


Ifs and Maybes

by mandzipop



Category: The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms, The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Magic, Oral Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2020-12-13 16:10:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 33
Words: 130,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21000479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mandzipop/pseuds/mandzipop
Summary: After binge-watching TVD and a sudden headache, rendering her unconscious; Schoolteacher and Stelena shipper, Laura wakes up in Mystic Falls hospital in Elena's body. To get home, Laura must make a change in the plot, but how? And when all is said and done, will she even want to go back to her old life? Rated M for later smut. Contains O/C and is a Delena based story.





	1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**I'm back, and yes, I know I've got stories to finish, but I needed to write one from scratch to get me back into the swing of things, so here we are.**

**If anyone has seen Life on Mars (the British version) and its sequel Ashes to Ashes, then this story is in a similar vein.**

**I have this story pretty much mapped out, except I have two options for the end. We shall see which one I go with.**

**This first chapter is very short as it is only a basic intro, the rest of the chapters will be my normal length.**

**Early Stelena shipping is only essential for the plot, but not recommended for the reader. So as much as I might write some seriously gooey, Stefan worshipping/Damon hating material, it does not necessarily reflect my own opinions, just those of a character.**

**The story is rated an M for violence, bad language and probable smut (it's me, of course there will be some smut).**

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Laura looked at the clock and yawned. It was just after eleven and she had to up for work the next morning, and her mom would be stopping by to look after her dog, a springer spaniel called Rosie. She pressed stop on the DVD player, which had just been playing episode five of season three of The Vampire Diaries, for what seemed like the millionth time. She then turned off the tv, the lights, locked the door and gave Rosie big fuss and a goodnight kiss on the head. Standing back up, Laura initially thought she had a head rush from bending down. But when pain set in, she decided it must be a tiredness headache from binge-watching too much Vampire Diaries and stress.

Six months earlier, Laura's father David had died from lung cancer at the age of sixty-seven. This had left the forty-year-old schoolteacher, Laura to pick up the pieces with her mom, who was an absolute mess, as she and Laura's father had been together since they were teenagers. Now Laura spent most of her spare time, when she wasn't marking homework, with her mom. Laura's boyfriend had given up trying to see her, and they'd eventually split up. This meant Laura rarely had any time to herself. Tonight however, had been an exception.

That night, to cheer herself up, Laura had had a couple of glasses of wine, a pizza and managed to watch five episodes of season three of The Vampire Diaries. That particular show had been her go to method of escapism ever since her father died. She'd lost count of how many times she'd watched it, especially seasons one to four. As a hardcore Stelena shipper, in Laura's opinion, the show had gone downhill from when Elena had told Stefan she wanted to be with Damon. On the other hand, season three was her favorite as Stefan looked extra hot during his time with Klaus.

At the time the show was airing, for Laura, the shipping wars had all started out as a bit of fun, especially as she was a grown woman with responsibilities. However, she'd gotten involved in some heated debates over the years, over the merits of Stefan vs Damon, and in Laura's eyes, Stefan won hands down, and nothing would ever change her opinion on that fact. Two years after the show had finished in 2019, she only had eyes for Stefan, even though she no longer participated in the heated debates online any longer, especially as the show had killed off Stefan and made Delena endgame.

However, she was done for tonight, and now it was time for bed and her head was pounding. By the time she reached the bathroom, the headache was quickly getting worse. Laura opened the cabinet above the sink and took out some Tylenol. She swallowed two pills before brushing her teeth and heading to her room. She slowly got changed, the headache not seeming to abate one bit, in fact it was getting worse by the minute, but she knew it would take around twenty minutes for the pills to work.

As Laura changed into her pyjama's and climbed into bed, she suddenly felt like she'd been hit over the head with a hammer. She thought she heard a loud banging sound, then she felt a pain in her neck. Laura had no choice but to lie down, due to the headache becoming so bad. It was at this point she began to worry that the headache might be something more serious. She turned over and reached for her phone to call 911, but it was just out of reach, and she didn't have the strength to stretch any further. Eventually, as the darkness consumed her, Laura's last conscious thought was what would happen to her mom and Rosie if this headache was as serious as she suspected it to be. she just hoped they'd be okay. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura woke to the sound of machines beeping in the background. Initially she didn’t open her eyes as she was scared at what she would find. However, Laura could sense the presence of another person moving around her, adjusting what felt like a needle stuck in her arm. She opened her eyes to see a nurse changing a full blood bag, which confused Laura.

“Where am I?” Laura asked.

“In the hospital, sweetie.” The nurse told her. “You suffered through a terrible ordeal.”

“What? How? I went to bed with a headache.” Laura frowned. “How did I get here? Did my mom call 911?”

“Your mom?” the nurse shook her head. “No, of course not dear. It was your friend Stefan who brought you here.” She said.

“I don’t have any friends called Stefan.” Laura told her, as she realized she felt woozy and confused. “Why am I here? What’s wrong with me?” she asked.

“You've lost a lot of blood.” The nurse told her as she gestured to the blood bag on the bed next to Laura, which she stared at confused. Laura had donated blood enough times to know the bag was filling up with blood, not emptying. “Why are you taking my blood?”

“It's very important for your friend Klaus.” The nurse smiled, confusing Laura even more.

Laura thought for a moment before starting to laugh. The last thing she’d watched was the episode of vampire diaries where Elena ended up in hospital after Klaus had discovered how to make hybrids. Laura realized she must be dreaming about the show, which wouldn’t be the first time, although on this occasion, it felt a little more realistic than usual. Deciding she wanted to have a look around, Laura tried to sit up on the bed, however the nurse pushed her back down and injected something into her arm.

“Don't fight it, sweetie. He told me you need plenty of rest.” The nurse told her, sticking a needle into her arm as Laura realized she was sedating her.

As Laura was already weak, she couldn’t fight the nurse, and began to drift back to sleep once more; all she could do was feel a little annoyed that her dream was only about the time when she was in hospital. It would have been so much better if she’d had the chance to interact with the main characters, especially Stefan.

What seemed like only moments later, Laura sensed someone else in the room, again fiddling with wires or tubes, except this time the person was leaning over her. Initially she thought it might be the nurse again, however a scent washed over her, which was so enticing, she had to see who it was. Laura turned her head and slowly opened her eyes, still groggy from the sedative.

Piercing blue eyes and a shock of black hair and the face of Laura's least favorite character, was the sight to greet her. Initially she was unsure whether to call him Ian or Damon but judging from the fact she had seen the nurse from the show earlier, she guessed the latter would be more appropriate. At least if she got it wrong, Ian would understand her calling him Damon, however, Damon would be confused by being called Ian.

“Damon...” Laura whispered, as she saw him looking at the tubes with concern.

Damon turned his head back to her at the sound of her voice. “Hey.” He whispered back to her; his voice full of concern.

Exhausted, Laura closed her eyes once more as Damon pulled off her blanket and put his arms under her, before lifting her out of the bed Laura curled her head into his chest, and took in the sensation of his strong arms and the smell of his masculine scent, which made her feel safe, while he carried her out of the room.

Damon gently placed Laura into the front seat of his car, and covered her up with a blanket, before whizzing around at vamp-speed to the drivers-side of the car, starting it up and setting off, to take them to the Salvatore mansion. Laura didn’t speak to Damon for the whole journey, she just sat, staring out of the window, as her mind was in complete turmoil.

First of all, this dream was beginning to seem a little too realistic for Laura's liking. She’d never experienced the sensation of smell like she had in this dream. Something which was now even more intense now she was sat next to Damon in the car. Secondly, even though she was feeling groggy, this did not feel like a dream. Laura could tell it was hot, she also felt a little bit thirsty. She could feel the leather car seat against her skin, which oddly gave her some comfort, yet at the same time worried her.

Laura knew dreams shouldn’t feel this real. She remembered the headache she had the previous evening, and wondered if, as she had suspected, it had been something more serious than a migraine. That meant she could be in a coma, natural or induced. Her uncle was in a coma for three weeks after suffering from as major heart-attack. However, as far as he was concerned, he’d been holidaying in Australia and having the time of his life. Afterwards, he told her it was far more realistic than any dream he’d ever experienced, he even knew when he was coming home as he was boarding an airplane when he woke up. The thought that she could be in a coma terrified Laura. However, if it meant she was aware of it, she would be able to fight it and get home as soon as possible. All she needed to do was work out how she was supposed to do that. In the meantime, Laura was going to have to play along with being Elena Gilbert, which, considering how well she knew the show, shouldn’t be hard.

Annoyingly, although Stefan was hot during this period of the show, he and Elena weren’t on particularly good terms. In fact, Elena was in the process of falling for Damon. And as far as Laura was concerned, no matter how good he looked, or smelled, she was not going to fall for the dark-haired vampire like Elena did. Depending on how long she was going to be stuck in her dreamland, she would fight tooth and nail to get Stefan back. Maybe that was the key to regaining consciousness and her ticket home. However, in the meantime, she was going to play along as if she were Elena, which meant, after her initial meeting with Stefan, Laura had all night to plan her escape back to reality. Fortunately, due to her binge-watching those first five episodes, she knew exactly what to expect when she got back to the Salvatore mansion.

They soon arrived at the Salvatore boarding house, and no matter how much she protested, Damon refused to let Laura walk, instead he carried her from the car and into the house. As much as she hated it on the outside, inside she was grateful, as she truly felt awful. The headache which started the previous night had abated, but she still felt weak and groggy, which made her suspect it was the sedatives she was either receiving while in a coma, or the imaginary sedatives the nurse had just given her, combined with imaginary blood loss due to Klaus.

Damon carried Laura down the hallway and into the room which she recognized as the library. He gently sat her down on the chair and walked over to the wet bar, where he poured a glass of whiskey, before sitting down on the couch which was next to her chair.

“Hey, have some bourbon. It'll help you forget.” Damon said softly, handing her the glass of bourbon. Laura held the glass in her hands and took a sip, almost choking on its strength. Normally Laura liked bourbon, but she was feeling a little under the weather and wasn’t sure it was the right medicine to fix her, but she appreciated the gesture.

“Yeah, it's strong.” Damon belatedly warned her. “You know I can help you forget, too. At least the memories you don't want to keep.” He suggested.

“No. No compulsion. I need to remember everything.” Laura said in her most defiant Elena method possible.

Damon held up her necklace. “I stole it back for you.” Damon offered.

Laura momentarily stared into space, trying to remember Elena's line. “He's really gone. I saw it happen. After everything that we went through to get him back. Now he's just...gone.” she replied, hoping it was close enough to the original script to at least experience the scene, in the knowledge Stefan would appear shortly. When Damon puts the necklace on the table beside them, she looked up at him. “Where were you, Damon?” she asked, knowing full well he was searching for Mikael with Katherine and Jeremy.

Damon put his hand on her leg. “I shouldn't have left. I promise you...I will never leave you again.” He said tenderly as they looked at each other.

“Well, isn't this cozy?” came Stefan's voice from behind them.

They both turned see Stefan leaning against a pillar at the edge of the room and Damon got up, standing protectively near Laura.

“What are you doing here, brother?” Damon asked as Stefan walked into the room to the wet bar and poured himself a drink.

“Last I checked; I live here.” Stefan replied. “Klaus is gone, but he's asked me to keep watch on you until he returns. From now on, you're under my protection.” He said while looking directly at Laura, before holding up his glass to Damon and taking a drink. “Mmm, by all means. Carry on.” He smiled as he walked out of the room, leaving Damon and Laura looking at each other with genuine surprise on Damon's part, however Laura was faking it.

In fact, it took more for Laura to recover from seeing Stefan in the flesh for the first time, than it did to feel better from the sedatives. Her heart was racing so hard and fast from excitement, she was surprised Damon couldn’t hear it, although there was a chance he could and took her reaction to be one of fear.

Damon turned back to face Laura. “How are you feeling?” he asked. “You want me to take you home? First day back at school tomorrow.” He sighed.

Laura nodded. She remembered with dismay Elena was also due to start her training with Alaric. Laura hated most forms of exercise. She didn’t mind taking Rosie for a walk or cycling to work, which was how she kept fit. However, fighting and weights were not her thing. Therefore, Laura hoped she’d wake up in hospital the next morning instead of training with Ric.

Damon drove her back home. On the way, Laura took in the route from the Salvatore house to Elena's. If she were to wake up still in Mystic Falls, she was going to need to know her way around as directions weren’t exactly clear in the show. However, from her previous twitter conversations with people who had been on Mystic Falls tours, the Forbes house was practically opposite the Gilbert property, and Bonnie's house was just around the corner. The town was visible from the road outside her house, which meant she could easily get to the grill and back, however the location of Wickery Bridge, the boarding house, the cemetery and the school, had always remained a mystery up until now. Wickery bridge was just off the exit to the boarding house, which was easy to memorize, and the route into town was fairly simple and straightforward. She decided to see if Ric or Caroline would give her a lift to school, that way it would save any awkward, embarrassment from getting lost.

Damon finally dropped her off, to find Ric waiting for her in the kitchen. Damon tried to speak to him, but he and Ric were still on the outs from Damon snapping his neck at the founder’s party. Damon promptly left, leaving Laura alone with Ric.

“How are you feeling?” Ric asked, his voice full of concern.

“A little woozy still, but I’ll be fine in the morning.” Laura replied. “Speaking of which, can I ask you a favor?”

“Sure?” Ric nodded. “What can I help you with?”

“Stefan has apparently been assigned to be my new bodyguard by Klaus.” Laura told him.

“Yeah, Damon mentioned that on the phone.” Ric frowned.

“Well, I want to make sure that I can stand up for myself. I need you to help me learn how to fight vampires!” she told him.

Ric looked at her thoughtfully before answering. “You do know I train before school.” He said.

“That’s fine with me.” Laura nodded.

“It’s not going to be easy.” He warned her. “Prepare for cuts and bruises.”

“I don’t care, as long as I can protect myself.” Laura smiled.

“And don’t expect immediate results.” Ric added. “This takes time and patience. Although you already know the basics.”

“I’m all in.” Laura insisted.

“Okay then. Set your alarm for five thirty tomorrow morning.” Ric nodded. “In the meantime, I suggest you get an early night.” He added.

“Yeah, I think I need to get some rest.” Laura agreed. Goodnight Ric.” She smiled before heading upstairs and looking around to try to work out which was her room.

“Goodnight Elena.” Ric said, following her upstairs, as he also needed to go to bed early.

Laura closed the bedroom door before making her way over to the bed and flopping down on it. She took a deep sigh of relief for the peace and quiet, to take stock of her so-called dream, before planning her next course of action.

Obviously, she hoped she would wake the next morning in hospital and not have to concern herself with trying to remember the plot. However, should the unthinkable happen, she would have to come up with a backup plan. As a schoolteacher, school itself wouldn’t be too hard. In fact, being a pupil would make life much easier. She’d gotten her bearings for most of the essential places in Mystic Falls. As long as everyone else drove her to the places she didn’t know, she’d soon work them out.

Her next task would be to try and work out what she had to do to get home. She would also need to talk to Bonnie, who would probably work out fairly quickly she wasn’t Elena from just touching her. That gave her an idea to call Bonnie and ask her for a lift to school, that way she could talk to her alone in the car. Laura even wondered if Bonnie might be able to help with establishing what she needed to do to get home. Laura was also going to have to work out what it felt like to be eighteen again. She wouldn’t have the innocence Elena possessed, especially considering she had knowledge of the future of every character in the show. She just hoped she could remember enough from the show to keep up the act of being Elena Gilbert.

In the meantime, depending on what her task was, Laura was going to make sure Elena didn’t fall for Damon. Admittedly, Laura found Damon much hotter in the flesh than she did on TV. Also, his personality seemed a lot sweeter and far gentler after meeting him in person, than she thought when watching the show. It was hard to imagine he was a psychotic killer, when he was around her. This did not mean Laura was mellowing to Damon, he still annoyed the fuck out of her, but she now had a better understanding of what Elena saw in him. As far as Laura was concerned, for Elena, it would and should always be Stefan, and the only way to prevent that would be for Elena to never become a vampire. This meant Laura would have to set the wheels in motion to stop that from happening. Therefore, all the while she was getting ready for bed, Laura was plotting and scheming how to stop Elena's transformation, and by the time she got under the covers, she had a good idea of what to do. As long as it didn’t interfere with whatever she had to do to get home. As she drifted off to sleep, she just hoped she never had to execute it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**So there isn't too much interaction between Damon and Laura in this chapter, but the next chapter will make up for it, I promise. **

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Once more, the sound of beeping woke Laura, however this time it was a familiar sound, it was an alarm clock and it sounded just like the one she had at home. She turned over and opened her eyes to check the time, which said five fifteen. Unfortunately, it wasn't Laura's clock, it was Elena's, meaning Laura was still stuck in Mystic Falls, and this dream was lasting a lot longer than she'd hoped. To make matters worse, she had training with Alaric, which was why her alarm clock had gone off so early, and after that she would have school. So begrudgingly, Laura climbed out of bed and made her way to the bathroom.

Once she had showered and brushed her teeth, Laura made her way back into her room and looked at her reflection in the mirror. It was the first time she'd had the opportunity to observe herself in Elena's body. The first thing she noticed were the bite marks on her neck from where Stefan had bit Elena before Laura woke up in her body. Laura ran her fingers along the bite marks to see if they hurt, but surprisingly they didn't. she looked down on the dresser and found some base to use to cover up the marks as best she could.

Appearance wise, Laura was about as opposite to Elena as possible. She was forty, with blonde hair and grey eyes, not overweight, but she no longer had the figure of an eighteen-year-old like Elena. She normally carried her hair shoulder-length as opposed to Elena's long chocolate locks. Because of this, she was unfamiliar with some of the more recent hair trends for long hair, when hers was last Elena's length, she'd done nothing fancier than a French plait. Fortunately, for now, she only had to tie it back in a ponytail, which was quite within her capabilities.

Just after she'd finished getting dressed, Laura heard movement outside her bedroom. She opened the door and saw Alaric heading off downstairs.

"Good morning." She greeted him as he simply held his hand up instead of answering. He was clearly hungover, which strangely concerned Laura. She knew from experience he couldn't be fully functioning if he didn't have a clear head. Although she knew it was only a dream, for the first time since she'd entered this coma, or whatever it was, she felt concern for another person. She just wished she could help him in some way.

Half an hour later, they were in the woods out near the Salvatore mansion, where Ric had set up some kind of mini-training facility, with targets for crossbows and wrist punches. They'd stopped off at his apartment on the way to pick up some of his training weapons, giving Laura another place to learn the location of, as she'd need it later that day after school where she'd be working out.

Once they were set up, Alaric handed Laura what looked like a large wrist band, he called a stake sleeve, which two stakes poking out.

"Here, put this on, the pointed end facing your enemy." He told her, to which Laura gave him a pointed look, as if he were stating the obvious. He then punched the mannequin to show her how to stake a vampire with the stake sleeve. "So, the pressure of your punch ejects the stakes." He explained.

"Okay, that looks fairly simple." Laura said as she punched the mannequin as hard as she could, but the stakes stayed in the sleeve. "That's weird." She frowned as she tried again but it still didn't work. "There must be something wrong with it." She said, fiddling with the homemade contraption.

"You're not strong enough. Better start lifting some weights, put some meat on your bones." Ric told her.

"Thanks for being so blunt." Laura raised an eyebrow.

Alaric then bent down and rummaged in his bag and brought something to shows her. "You know what this is?" he asked.

"A vervain grenade." Laura replied.

"Then you know the element of surprise is your only advantage when it comes to a vampire." Alaric told her before pulling the pin out of a grenade and throwing it into Laura's hand. "Surprise." He said.

"Oh my god." Laura cried as she threw it into the air just before it exploded. "This isn't a joke Ric! She yelled as she angrily pulled off her armband, stake contraption.

"You think I'm joking?" Ric snapped back. "Vampires will take whatever they want. They will hurt whoever they want. And they'll do it without remorse. It's their nature." He said angrily, clearly referring to Damon, who he thought was his best friend, yet had snapped his neck and killed him, just because he was pissed off with Ric for interfering with Damon's affections towards Elena. This time, Laura was going to take Ric's side. As far as she was concerned, Damon was a dick for the way he treat Ric.

"You can say Stefan." Laura said instead, despite knowing his true meaning.

"Look, I get why you're here. Stefan hurt you. You don't want it to happen again." Ric replied, a little more softly than before.

"I know you think that I'm crazy to think that I can protect myself from a vampire who's flipped the switch." She shook her head.

"I think you found a way to get out of bed this morning." Alaric smiled. "And that makes you the strongest person I know. I think that you can do pretty much anything." He said encouragingly, as he handed her back the armband with the stakes, which she put back on and started punching some more.

An hour and a half later, Laura was sat in Bonnie's car, getting ready to go head off to their first day of senior year at school. Laura knew she needed to make a mental note of the directions, ready for when it was her turn to drive. She'd text Bonnie earlier, telling her they urgently needed to talk. Laura just hoped Bonnie would pick up on something being wrong the moment she touched her, but oddly she didn't.

"So, what was so important, other than the Stefan situation, that you wanted me to drive us to school?" Bonnie asked. "I'm guessing it is something either magical or Damon related."

"It's definitely not Damon related." Laura laughed. "And I'm not entirely sure it's magical either, but it could be." she added.

"So, spill the beans." Bonnie laughed.

"Touch my arm and tell me what you see." Laura told her.

"Why?" Bonnie frowned.

"Seriously, touch me and tell me what you see?" Laura insisted.

"Fine." Bonnie rolled her eyes as she touched Laura's arm. She frowned for a moment before she said "I see the lights turning red."

"About me." Laura shook her head. "Is there anything different about me?" she asked.

"There's nothing different about you Elena." Bonnie told her. "Apart from the fact you're beginning to freak me out." She added.

Laura took a deep breath. "I'm not Elena." She told her.

"Katherine?" Bonnie cried.

"No." Laura shook her head. "My name is Laura Jennings. I'm not a doppelganger, I'm a schoolteacher who went to bed with a headache and woke up in Elena's body." She explained.

"How do you know who everyone is?" Bonnie asked.

"I'm in a TV show called the Vampire Diaries." Laura told her. "I know what will happen to everyone between now and 2018. I think I'm in a coma. I just want to go home."

"Okay." Bonnie nodded slowly. "Look, say I believe you; how do you think I can help?" she asked.

"I want you to ask the witches what I need to do to go home. Put Elena's mind back in her body and everything will be fine. I can go home to my job, my mom and my dog." She said.

"Well, as you probably know, the witches and me aren't exactly on the best of terms since I brought Jeremy back." Bonnie told her. "I pissed them off and I don't think they'll help me with anything else."

"I think they will." Laura disagreed. "You see, I think I need to change something, and only they will know what it is. I think it is something in their best interests." She explained.

"Alright." Bonnie nodded. "We'll talk about it after school." She said as they pulled into the Mystic Falls high school parking lot. "Do you think you can pretend to be Elena until then?" she asked.

"I'm a schoolteacher." Laura smiled. "I'll be doing wonders for Elena's grades. Everything else, I know all about." She smiled. "Just treat me exactly the same as you would treat Elena." Laura told her. "I just want out of here before I have to do things I don't want to do." She cringed.

"Like what?" Bonnie asked.

"Like make out with Damon… A lot." Laura cringed.

"Damon and Elena make out?" Bonnie asked, wide eyed.

"Make out?" Laura looked at Bonnie. "Soon Damon and Elena will be at it like bunnies. They even end up married with kids."

"But vampires can't have kids." Bonnie frowned. "Damon and Elena, ew, gross."

"It's a long story." Laura sighed. "But I think I'm here to stop that from happening." She told her. "Oh, and Damon becomes your BFF." She added.

"Never, ever!" Bonnie frowned. "Okay, I'll see what I can do." She said.

"You're taking this really well." Laura frowned.

"The real Elena would never lie to me about something like this, so I believe you think you are telling the truth." Bonnie replied. "But that doesn't mean I do think you are someone else. I'm still getting Elena when I touch you. If you were someone else, I would expect to sense something about your past." She told her.

"So, what do you think it is?" Laura frowned as they got out of the car, where they saw Caroline approaching.

"I'm wondering if you were compelled to think you were someone." Bonnie offered

"By who?" Laura asked.

"Shh! Incoming!" Bonnie whispered back, prompting them both to turn around and laugh as Caroline threw her hands around their necks.

Once Caroline had released them from her vice-like grip, they turned to face the school. "Here we are. Senior year." She said.

"Anyone else think it should feel slightly more empowering?" Bonnie asked.

"Okay. So, prank night was a bust. But we are accepting it, and we are moving on." Caroline replied enthusiastically, as they set off towards the school.

"You're right. I mean, why should I let the fact that my boyfriend is seeing the ghost of his dead girlfriends hinder this experience?" Bonnie shrugged.

"Yes! And why should I let the fact that my boyfriend was turned into a hybrid put a damper on an otherwise fabulous day." Caroline added.

"Today's our anniversary." Laura sighed. "Stefan and I met on the first day of school last year." She said sadly.

"Yeah. You win." Caroline nodded.

"Are you sure you want to be here?" Bonnie frowned.

"I have to be here." Laura replied. "Graduation is more important than boyfriend dramas." She smiled as they headed inside.

Bonnie discreetly helped Laura find Elena's locker, and left her to go to her own as her phone rang. She looked at the caller I'd, which told her it was Damon. Laura sighed and answered it.

"Hey Damon. Why are you calling me? I'm just about to start school?" she asked.

"Yeah. So... You might not want to come here for a while. We have a new housemate. Barbie Klaus." He replied.

"Rebekah? What is she doing there?" Laura asked, pretending to sound shocked.

"She's stranded" Damon told her. "Apparently, Klaus left her in the dust after I name-dropped Mikael."

"What about Stefan? What is he up to?" Laura asked, mindlessly twirling her hair.

"Oh, you know Stefan. Journaling, reading, shaping his hair." Damon told her.

"Come on, Damon. I can handle it. Be honest. What is he up to?" she asked.

"Is that the bell? Oh...Ring! Ring! Don't want to be late!" Damon chimed before hanging up, prompting Laura to roll her eyes with annoyance at him.

Just as she lifted her head up, Laura noticed Caroline putting up a flyer on the wall which said, "Spirit Squad Back-to-school Bonfire".

"I forgot about the bonfire." Laura sighed.

"You have to go. It's our first spirit squad event. And it sets the bar for the whole year." Caroline insisted.

"Relax, Caroline. I'll be there." Laura smiled.

"Thank you. It's just that..." Caroline started however she was suddenly distracted by the arrival of Tyler who kissed her.

"Happy first day!" Tyler grinned as Laura noticed a red mark on his shirt.

"Is that blood?" Laura whispered.

"Oh my God!" Caroline cried, grabbing Tyler and throwing him into the boys' restroom, while Laura followed them in.

"What's going on?!" Tyler asked, sounding confused.

"Vampire 101...don't wear your breakfast to school!" Caroline chided, as Laura checked the stalls to make sure no one else was there.

"Chill out. It was just a blood bag." Tyler replied, looking confused at her reaction.

"From where?" Caroline asked.

"Rebekah hooked me up." Tyler told her.

"Rebekah? And what are you even talking to her for?" Caroline snapped, as Laura started to collect some paper towels to help clean Tyler up.

"Klaus told her to keep a watch on me. Protect his new asset." Tyler smirked.

"His what? Why are you amused by this?" Caroline looked at Tyler, confused by his odd response.

"I'm his first successful hybrid, Caroline. Don't you think that's the tiniest bit awesome?" Tyler replied smugly.

"Oh, wow! I cannot believe you just said that." Caroline shook her head with disgust.

Deciding it was time to leave the domestic, Laura handed the paper towels to Tyler. "So, I'm going to go to class. Good luck." She whispered, as she walked out of the restroom door and bumping straight into Stefan.

"Hello, Elena." Stefan grinned.

"Why are you here?" Laura folded her arms, her heart racing from a combination of lust and fear. She hadn't felt this way since having a crush on Alex Peterson in her own senior year.

"What do you mean? I'm going back to school. Go Timberwolves!" Stefan grinned manically.

"What? Why?" Laura shook her head.

"Klaus wants me to keep an eye on you. I'm just doing what I'm told." Stefan shrugged.

Laura rolled her eyes. "I'm going to be late for class." She told him as she tried to leave but he grabbed her by the arm and stopped her, which for some reason Laura found incredibly annoying.

"Oh, class is this way." Stefan smirked, his grip on her arm becoming painful.

"Let go of my arm Stefan." Laura said through gritted teeth. "You're hurting me."

"Elena, do you think I want to be a senior for the 100th time? No. But if I don't have a choice in the matter, then neither do you." Stefan snarled.

"I said let go of me." Laura growled, as Alaric appeared from behind Laura.

"Let her go." Ric threatened Stefan, who pinned Alaric up against the locker.

"Stefan, stop it!" Laura growled, realizing how much he was beginning to annoy her.

"You're not gonna want to get in my way. Okay Ric? I will see you both in history." Stefan replied before leaving for class, while Laura and Ric simply stood there and looked at each other.

"Meet me in my classroom before history." Ric whispered. "I think we need to talk." He told her, as Laura nodded in agreement before Ric left.

Laura had Math and English before her class with Ric, which is where they met before the rest of the students began to pile in.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Ric asked.

"You know that Klaus compelled him to watch over me, as I'm now one of Klaus's assets because my blood is the way to create hybrids." Laura explained as Ric nodded with understanding. "Well he's decided to take it to the extreme and watch over me at school." She continued, rolling her eyes.

"You need a school bodyguard? Surely Stefan realizes it isn't necessary." Ric frowned.

"I have no idea what he thinks anymore. He's not the Stefan I know. Right now, he's just blindly following Klaus orders." She sighed with dismay as the school bell rang, and the students began to filter in, as Elena lowered her voice.

"Him being here is not good for any of us. We have to do something." Laura whispered, before going over to her seat. Caroline sat on one side of her and a guy sat on the other side. Just at that moment Stefan entered the room and walked over towards the seat next to Laura which had just been occupied with the guy Laura didn't know the name of.

"You're in my seat." Stefan said in a threatening tone, forcing the guy to sit elsewhere, before smiling at Laura and sitting down.

"Hey you!" Stefan said to Laura sarcastically, who decided to completely ignore him and concentrate on Ric, who was writing AP AMERICAN HISTORY on the blackboard in chalk.

"Welcome back, seniors." Ric smiled. "Let's turn our brains back on, starting with this country's original founders...the Native Americans." He started as there was a sudden disturbance as Rebekah entered the classroom.

"What about the Vikings?" Rebekah asked as she took a seat at a desk.

"There's no evidence that Viking explorers actually settled in the United States" Alaric frowned. "Who are you?" he asked.

"My name's Rebekah. I'm new. And history's my favorite subject." She introduced herself.

After that Laura zoned out. She'd taken this class as a teacher herself so many times, that she could grade all of the papers for Ric. She'd have no problems writing a grade A plus essay. Instead she was busy thinking about what Bonnie had suggested, that she really was Elena Gilbert, but had been compelled to think she was someone else entirely. In theory it sounded like a plausible idea, however, the fact that she knew too much about the future meant it couldn't possibly be the case. What did concern her was Bonnie's inability to pick up Laura not being Elena. Bonnie told her she would go and visit the witches house the next day after school, to see if they could tell her anything as they were tied up with going to the back to school bonfire that evening. Internally, Laura had groaned as she couldn't stand the thought of even more working out, which also meant Damon was going to get a little hot and heavy with her later, something she really didn't want to do. However, it was out of their hands and Laura would have to cope with living in the body of Elena Gilbert for an extra day. Which also meant she would have to stick to Elena's exercise routine, including running after school. Unfortunately, this included a predictable, and unwanted running-mate in the shape of Stefan.

"Look at you being all fit. Hey, you going to the bonfire tonight? Sounds like fun, right?" Stefan asked.

"Look Stefan, will you just leave me alone? You are annoying me." Laura snapped, surprising herself by genuinely meaning it. This version of Stefan was extremely annoying in the flesh. She turned around and began to run in the opposite direction but he started to run backwards with her.

"You think I'm annoying now? Wait till homecoming." He said smugly. "Hey, who you bringing, by the way? I don't want to be weird." He asked as a guy accidentally bumped into Laura.

"I'm sorry." The guy apologized as Stefan pushed him so hard, he fell on his back.

"Watch it, dick!" Stefan said in a threatening voice.

"Who are you?!" Laura yelled at Stefan.

"I'm the guy who's been assigned to protect a human blood bag. I mean, no offense or anything." Stefan smirked.

Laura had had enough of Stefan for the day, so she decided to head to head off to Ric's loft. "Fuck you!" she said under her breath.

"What?!" Stefan called out after her.

"I said FUCK YOU!" Laura shouted back to Stefan, who simply laughed loudly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Sorry about the delay, this chapter was quite difficult to write.**

**This chapter is dedicated to everyone who has lost someone they love, and wish they would get the chance to talk to them one more time.**

The following day was surprisingly normal. Laura went to school, although she only had classes in the morning, Stefan still followed her around, but now he was slightly more discreet, resulting in him being a little less annoying. Occasionally Damon would keep checking in on her, but other than that, the morning passed off without a hitch. It was the rest of the day which concerned Laura, as the reason she was only attending school in the morning, was because it was what appeared to be the most pointless event ever, called Illumination Day. However, it meant her afternoon classes were cancelled so she and her fellow students could help with the preparations in the town square.

When Laura saw Tobias Fell giving the speech in the town square, she felt a little guilty knowing he was going to die horribly later that day, unfortunately, there was nothing she could do to prevent it, and after all, it was only a dream. She also noticed Jeremy behaving oddly. Laura knew Anna was there, but she decided not to say anything until Anna revealed herself.

Once they'd finished with setting up the lanterns to be lit up that evening (something Laura still didn't get the point of), she sat down with Ric and Jeremy outside the Mystic Grill to have a drink. Laura had Stefan's journals, which Damon had apparently given Elena when they went to Chicago to rescue him. She had been scouring through them to see if Elena had missed anything, which Laura would realize was important with her additional knowledge. However, she'd come to the same conclusion Elena had, that Lexi was the only solution. Laura momentarily wished she could see her dad too, but it didn't happen in the show, so she quickly banished that thought from her mind. In the meantime, she decided to keep with the script and wait for the right time to get Bonnie to help her.

Laura turned to Jeremy. "Hey, Jer, I need your help with something." She said.

"What's up?" Jeremy asked.

"I've been going through Stefan's old journals." Laura started to explain. "Every time he's gone off the rails in the past, his best friend Lexi's been the one to bring him back." She said.

"So where is she now that we need her?" Ric asked.

"She's dead." Jeremy said, looking at Laura. "And you want me to try to reach her, don't you?" he surmised.

"I thought if I knew what she did, maybe I could help him." Laura explained.

"I don't even know if she's on the other side." Jeremy shrugged.

"The other side?" Laura frowned, as if she'd never heard the term before.

"That's what Anna calls it. There's not like an official brochure or anything." Jeremy told them.

"So, what is it, like some sort of supernatural purgatory?" Ric asked.

"Well, Anna said it's like being here with all of us, only we can't see her or hear her. And she can't interact with anyone. She's all alone." Jeremy told them.

"So, let's say Lexi is on the other side, do you think it's possible to contact her?" Laura asked.

"I don't know." Jeremy shook his head. "I didn't have an emotional connection with her. I never even met her."

"Can we just drop it, please?" Ric pleaded.

"No, I can't drop it, Ric. I don't know what else to do." Laura said, frustration creeping into her voice.

"Don't you think we have a few too many dead vampires in our past to be sitting here thinking of them watching us?" Ric asked as suddenly Jeremy started to stare at the empty chair, which Laura knew that it meant Anna was talking to Jeremy.

"Is Anna here right now?" Laura asked Jeremy.

"No, no. I'm going to go, uh, check my work schedule." He replied, suddenly getting up and leaving Ric and Laura alone at the table, however, seconds later his seat was occupied by Stefan.

"Hey, guys. Who forgot to invite me to the family summit?" Stefan asked in a cheerful voice, which dripped with sarcasm. It was then he noticed his journals on the table and picked one up to flick through it. "Hmm? Wow. All these words. I forgot how much I used to care." He laughed.

"I didn't." Laura replied.

"You know, Elena, it's probably best you not torture yourself with memories from the past. It's best we both just move on and accept things as they are." Stefan told her.

"You don't have to be here, Stefan." Ric said.

"You know what, Alaric, you're right. I don't. But Elena's here, and I look out for Elena. Besides, there's going to be people everywhere tonight. So, there's going to be lots to eat." Stefan grinned. Laura looked at him and raised an eyebrow in shock.

Stefan simply laughed. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Loosen up." He told her as he got up and left.

Laura looked on at Alaric. "I can't drop it, Ric." She reiterated, shaking her head. "You know, I just wanna go home." she sighed, noticing the skies starting to darken.

"Okay." Ric nodded as they stood up.

"I just need to use the restroom." She told him as they headed inside the Grill.

"I'll grab Jeremy." Ric said, heading into the Grill.

"I'll be right back." Laura nodded at Ric before heading towards the restroom, knowing full well she was going to be the one to find Jeremy.

The scene Laura found when she walked into the restroom was exactly what she expected, which was the sight of Jeremy kissing Anna.

"Anna?" Laura said, trying to pretend to be shocked.

Anna looked back at Laura in surprise. "You can see me?" she asked.

"Of course I can see you." Laura frowned. "You were kissing my brother." She snapped. "But more importantly, is why and how can I see you." She said, getting her phone out of her pocket.

"What are you doing?" Jeremy asked as Laura pressed Bonnie's speed dial number.

"I'm going to find out how we can fix it!" Laura replied as Caroline answered the phone.

"Elena?" Caroline answered.

"I need to speak to Bonnie." Laura told her. "We've got a problem."

"If you mean the ghosts, Bonnie already knows about." Caroline explained.

"Does she know how they got here in the first place?" Laura frowned.

"When Bonnie brought Jeremy back to life, she cracked open a door to the other side. Vicki tricked Jeremy and Matt into performing a ritual to allow her to become visible to Matt and to physically interact with humans. Matt realized his mistake and got Bonnie to send Vicki back. It worked, but it gave the old witch on the other side the chance to open the door to other ghosts who feel they have unfinished business over here." Caroline explained.

"And does she know how to get rid of them?" Laura asked.

"Apparently the old witch can draw power from this side because of her talisman." Caroline explained.

"Her talisman...You mean my necklace?" Laura asked.

"It's some juju power source." Caroline told her. "And I know you're not going to like this, but Bonnie needs to destroy it." She said.

"Look Caroline, I just walked in on Jeremy kissing Anna. And for that reason, I'm completely okay with destroying the necklace." She agreed.

"What?! Are you kidding?" Caroline lowered her voice.

"I wish." Laura sighed. "But I don't have the necklace. Damon has it somewhere. Text him. I'll call you right back." She said, hanging up and looking at staring at Anna angrily.

"Elena..." Jeremy begged.

Laura ignored Jeremy and continued to stare at Anna. "You need to, go away, disappear or evaporate or whatever it is that you ghosts do." She told her. "I need to speak to Jeremy alone." She told her.

"Hey, it's not her fault." Jeremy insisted.

Laura turned to Jeremy. "You're right Jer, it's yours." She said angrily as Anna disappeared. "Okay, so how did this happen?" she asked once she was happy Anna was no longer with them.

"I don't know. Okay?" Jeremy replied sheepishly. "I don't know. It just...it did. Elena, please. You can't tell Bonnie." He pleaded.

"Oh, don't you worry." Laura snapped. "I'm going to let you do that. Right after I help her send the ghosts away." She said smugly before storming out of the restroom and straight into the figure of Lexi.

"Oh!" Laura said, sounding surprised.

"Looks like today was a good day to be thinking about me, Elena." Lexi smiled.

"Lexi?" Laura frowned.

"Mm-hmm." Lexi grinned. "Come with me." She demanded.

"What? where?" Laura asked.

"Ripper detox 101. Crash course." Lexi said proudly before grabbing Laura by the wrist.

"I..." Laura hesitated.

"I'm sorry, did you not just say how desperate you were for my help in saving Stefan's life?" Lexi asked.

Laura looked back at the restroom door regretfully before turning back to Lexi. "Let's go." She agreed and left the Grill with Lexi even though Laura knew it was going to be futile.

When Laura and Lexi arrived at the city jail, Stefan was already tied to a chair and sleeping with his head bowed.

"Klaus really did a number on him, huh?" Lexi sighed.

"Klaus compelled him to turn off his humanity." Laura told her.

"Well, we're just going to have to convince him to turn it back on." Lexi explained. "I have to warn you, it's not going to be pretty." She said.

"I'll be fine." Laura assured her as Lexi kicked Stefan.

"Wake up, sleepyhead." Lexi said sternly as Stefan began to wake up. "How you feelin'?" she asked him sarcastically.

Stefan looked at the chair and the chains he was tied up with and began to struggle in an attempt to escape. "What is this? Let me out of here!" he demanded, sounding a little confused.

"Shh. Inside voices, please. I'm trying to get inside your head." Lexi smiled calmly.

"Elena. Get rid of her, please." Stefan begged.

"No!" Laura folded her arms defiantly.

"First step, drying him out. Starve away the blood lust. Strip away the temptation." Lexi explained.

"This isn't going to work, Lexi. You can't do this." Stefan warned her.

"You heard the not pretty part?" Lexi turned to Laura.

"I heard you." Laura nodded as Lexi turned back to Stefan and began to stare at him.

"What are you doing?" Stefan asked. Although he question was quickly answered when he started growling in pain, although Laura couldn't see anything. However, she knew it was all in Stefan's head. "What are you doing, Lexi?!" he asked.

"Doing what I do best, sweetness. I'm saving your life." Lexi said with a saccharine voice.

"I'm starving! I'm starving! I'm starving! Let me out! Let me out. Please let me out." Stefan cried, clearly in a lot of pain.

"What's happening?" Laura asked.

"He's hallucinating. That's three months without any blood." Lexi explained.

"Let me out!" Stefan screamed, not paying attention to the conversation between Lexi and Laura.

"Now he's at nine months." Lexi told Laura as Stefan began to sweat. "Two years...Five." she continued to stare intently at Stefan, her mind control overwhelming him.

"Did I ever tell you how glad I am that you're dead?" Stefan spat.

"Oh. I missed you, too, friend." Lexi grinned sarcastically, as Laura's phone rang. To avoid the noise of Stefan's screams, she left the cell to answer it.

"Hello?" Laura said.

"So, the necklace isn't where Damon said it would be and now we can't reach Damon." Caroline told her, prompting Laura to remember that Damon was currently in the underground caves with Mason Lockwood, searching for the cave drawings.

"Look Caroline, I need you to get Bonnie to hold off on sending the ghosts back for a little bit." Laura sighed.

"What?! But you said you were in full support of getting rid of them." Caroline cried.

"I am. Its just that Lexi's here and she's helping with Stefan." Laura explained.

"Okay, let's just find it first and then we'll choose between boyfriend ghost dramas." Caroline agreed.

"Thanks Care." Laura smiled. "I gotta get back to Lexi." She said, ending the call and going back into the cell, where Stefan was looking even worse than before.

"Elena. I'm hurting. Please help me." Stefan pleaded.

"Don't listen. Shut him out." Lexi warned her.

"I am helping you, Stefan." Laura sighed, hating to see him like this.

"I'll do anything. I'll change. I promise." Stefan pleaded with Laura.

"It's a lie. He'll say anything right now." Lexi told her.

"Elena, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Just make it stop. Please, just make it stop." Stefan begged.

"You have to separate yourself from your emotions. Don't let him play on them." Lexi said sternly.

"Hey, look at me. Look at me." Stefan said softly to Laura, who looked at him, feeling desperately sorry for him. "Elena. I love you, okay? I love you. I love you so much. I love you so much, Elena." He told her sweetly.

"I'm sorry, Stefan, but I don't believe you." Laura said sadly, wishing his words were the truth and that things had changed from the show; however, everything was the same as his mood changed and the look on his face turned from loving to disgust.

"You know what? I don't want your help, anyway." Stefan snarled. "I wish I'd never met you. Every single moment that I've spent with you has been a complete and total waste."

"You see that? That's the ripper talking." Lexi tried to reassure her. "Once he's weak enough, you have to cause him pain. Make him feel things. Anger, rage, anything. You have to make him see past the blood." She explained as she drove a stake through his body before pulling it back out, making Laura feel physically sick.

"Think of it as a regimen. Day in and day out. Like running the treadmill. Like making coffee. Until he's ready to be saved." Lexi explained, trying to make it seem less personal.

"I will rip you apart, Lexi!" Stefan growled.

"You can't. I'm already dead." Lexi laughed, before driving the stake through his body again.

By this point Laura had had enough. "I can't..." she cried, running out of the cell.

Just as she closed the door Laura saw another figure standing in the shadows. This ghost definitely wasn't in the show. It was that of a man with blonde hair and from what she already knew, had piercing blue eyes.

"Dad?" Laura gasped.

"Hi Laura." Her real father smiled.

"What are you doing here?" Laura whispered.

"Come with me." He dad told her, causing Laura to be excited. She hoped he would lead her home, back to her mom and her dog. But instead he took her to the empty office which belonged to Sheriff Forbes.

As soon as the door was closed, Laura threw her arms around her dad's neck and held him tight, taking in his familiar scent. "Are you here to take me home?" Laura asked, lifting her head up to look at him.

Her dad shook his head. "You are home Laura." He told her. "The soul of a doppelganger is born on the Plane of Preparation before their body is born to the world." He explained. "You always were Elena Gilbert."

"But what about you and mom?" Laura asked.

"We are the guardians of your soul." Her dad explained. "We always knew you would leave us when you turned forty. That is why one of us had to die before, so that one of us could explain everything to you."

"What if I want to go back to my real home?" Laura asked as tears began to well up in her eyes.

"You will get the opportunity." Her dad smiled sadly. "But I wouldn't recommend it. You can do more good here on earth." He said.

"Why?" Laura asked. "All I'm doing is re-enacting a show where I know what will happen." She told him.

"You can change whatever you want." Her dad smiled. "It doesn't have to stick to the plot. You have the advantage of life experience and hindsight. Use this knowledge well. The show you have seen is based upon the actions of an eighteen-year-old. You can change what happens through your own experiences and what mistakes you thought Elena made along the way. I'm sure there were a few." He smirked.

Laura blushed. "Is this my real body?" she asked, although she had already decided this was part of the dream.

"Yes. You can do whatever you want with it." Her dad smiled. "I know why you are worried, but don't. Kissing a certain someone, or even more is fine." He winked. "This has always been your body. You won't be violating it by getting personal with a certain vampire." He smiled, seemingly trying to reassure Laura that if she kissed Stefan, it wouldn't be against the will of Elena, even if she decided to make sure nothing happened between her and Damon.

"How can I go back?" Laura asked.

"I can't tell you when your time will come." Her dad replied. "You may purposefully, or even inadvertently change the course of events if you don't want things to happen the way they did in the show. You'll know when it does though." He smiled as they suddenly heard sirens outside. "I've got to go sweetheart." He said sadly.

"Will I ever see you again?" Laura cried, tears streaming down her face.

"I will be here when you need me." Her dad said. "But only when you need my help. Instead I would ask Bonnie to guide you through what has happened to you. Sheila is leaving her an explanation while Bonnie is out searching for the necklace. She'll know what to do." He told her, kissing her on the forehead.

"I love you dad." Laura told her.

"I love you too Laura." He replied. "But now you need to go back to your friends, otherwise innocent people will die. So, whatever you do, always consider the consequences" He warned her as Laura turned to look out of the window to see flashing lights. "You need to get the necklace to Bonnie; you already know what to do." He told her before vanishing into thin air.

Laura looked around her in shock and sadness, she wanted him to stay and look after her. She wanted to digest what he had told her, but she knew she had no time. Instead she would have to wait until later to take in what her father had told her, and maybe she would get some more answers from Bonnie, although she realized now might not be the right time for that.

Laura took a deep breath and left the police department, only to find the police and paramedics in the Town Square, wrapping up the body of Tobias Fell. It was just then she noticed Jeremy, and headed in his direction

"Jeremy? What happened?" Laura asked, pretending to not know.

"I don't know." Jeremy told her. "Tobias Fell was found dead in a tree." He said.

"It must have been the ghosts from the tomb." Laura shook her head. "We need to get the necklace to send them back, but it's missing, and I think Anna took it. Where is she?" Laura asked.

"I don't know, okay?" Jeremy replied defensively. "What makes you think she took the necklace?" he asked.

"Anna was the only other person to hear us talking about duh, course she took it. Okay?" Laura rolled her eyes. "We have to get it back. We have to destroy it and then close the door before anyone else gets hurt." She said angrily.

"I know, but..." Jeremy started, but Laura was getting frustrated with him and didn't want to hear his excuses.

"But what Jer?" Laura folded her arms. "Look around you to see what is happening."

"But: I can touch her, Elena. I can kiss her again. And I know it's wrong, and I know that I shouldn't feel this way, but I do. I love her. I've always loved her." He said, sounding pathetic.

Laura shook her head. "But she's dead Jeremy. She's not real, she's in the past, a ghost. Are you going to love a ghost for the rest of your life?" she asked as she noticed Anna standing in the background just behind Jeremy. Realizing Anna would be the one to listen, she knew she had to convince the ghost.

"He's at the beginning of his life, Anna. You're just holding him back. You know it isn't fair." Laura said as Anna held up the necklace in her hand. Laura looked back at Jeremy. "Call Bonnie. Tell her that you have the necklace. Its time to send the ghosts away." She said, before heading back to the city jail to say goodbye to Lexi.

"Quit fighting me, Stefan. I know you're in there." Laura overheard Lexi say to Stefan as she walked down the spiral staircase to the jail.

"Not anymore, Lexi." Stefan growled back as Laura walked inside the cell.

"You know you say that every time. Until I make you feel again." Lexi snarled as she drove a stake through his stomach, causing Laura to wince.

"You wasted your whole life taking care of me. Now you're dead and you still have nothing better to do." Stefan mocked as Laura joined them.

"We're running out of time. Bonnie is going to destroy the necklace." Laura told Lexi.

"You've got to get me more." Lexi insisted.

"I can't." Laura said sadly.

"No! No... not until I break through." Lexi pleaded.

"I can't, Lexi. They already have the necklace. They're going to close the door." Laura told her.

Lexi thought for a minute as if she had just had a great idea, before looking back to Stefan.

"The necklace." Lexi said, her voice full of hope. "Okay. That necklace. At least tell me you remember how you felt about that. You found it during your darkest time. And you said, when you made it through, that that necklace represented hope." She pleaded with him.

"Ironic, then, that it's about to be blown to pieces." Stefan smiled sadistically.

At that moment Lexi raised her head, clearly realizing her time was up, before looking back at Laura. "He's still in there, Elena. You just have to break through." She said.

"It's okay, Lexi, I know what to do now. You can be free." Laura said as Lexi smiled, before taking one last look at Stefan and disappeared, leaving Laura and Stefan alone together.

"So, what are you going to do, Elena? You just going to stand there? Waiting for me to dry out?" Stefan asked, breaking the silence.

"No." Laura shook her head. "I'm going to go home, take care of Jeremy and be a friend to Bonnie and do everything else that I normally have to do." She said as she started to walk towards the door.

"That's good for you." Stefan said weakly. "You know, I was wondering when you were going to give up. Lexi gave you...enough of a glimpse into your tragic future." He mocked.

"I haven't given up hope Stefan." Laura said as she walked over to him. "But right now, there's nothing that I can do until you get yours back." She said as she stroked his face. "You can break through this. Feel something Stefan. Anything, because if you don't fight, you're going to lose me forever. And I won't love a ghost for the rest of my life." She said as she turned around and left, locking the door behind her.

When she got home, Laura lay down on her bed to consider what her dad had told her. His words had confused her even more. They would make sense whether she were in a coma or not. But now she had to consider whether the life she was now leading was the real world and the life she had lived had actually been the dream. Tears ran down her cheeks as exhaustion overcame her, and she fell fast asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura got to Ric's apartment and started with the weights. She really didn't want to go through with this scene as she knew things got a little intimate between Damon and Elena. However, if Laura were to get Stefan back, this was the first step in doing that, therefore she was going to have to grin and bear it. She lay down on the bench press and began to lift the bar. Just as she did, the door opened and in walked Damon. Laura inwardly moaned at the incoming flirtation from Damon.

"What? Are you going to bench press a vampire?" Damon joked.

"Can you believe Stefan actually called me a human blood bag? He's a totally different person." She complained trying to push the bar up, however Damon pressed down on it with one hand, making it impossible to move.

"What are you doing?" Laura snapped.

"Helping you out." Damon told her. Even without seeing his face she could hear the laughter in his voice.

"Damon!" Laura groaned.

"Come on, Buffy!" Damon teased.

"Stop it!" Laura demanded as she let go of the bar, which remained mid-air in Damon's hand. He lifted it as if it were a matchstick and placed it on the rack. "Like one obnoxious Salvatore isn't annoying enough." she grumbled quietly as she sat up, even though she knew Damon could hear her perfectly well with his vampire super hearing.

Damon chuckled to himself as he walked over to the nearby table full of Alaric's weapon's and picked up as stake and quickly turned around to face her as if pretending to get ready to stake her with a grin on his face.

"You called. I'm here. What's your plan, oh warrior princess?" Damon asked dramatically.

"I want to lock Stefan up, until this Mikael guy comes and kills Klaus, and then the compulsion breaks." Laura told him breathlessly.

Damon shrugged. "Compulsion or not, Stefan's high on human blood, Okay? A lot of it." he explained, cracking his knuckle against the stake.

"You've gotten him off of it before." Laura begged.

"This is different." Damon frowned. "It's not a stint in rehab, Elena. His humanity's gone. Light's out. No one's home."

"Then do it for me, Damon." Elena pleaded as she released her hair from its ponytail. "Every single time I look at him, I feel like I'm going to break. And I'm not going to give him that satisfaction." She said as got up and walked over to Damon. Just as she was about to turn and walk away, Damon took her hand and puts it on his chest, just above his heart. "What are you doing" Laura eyed him suspiciously.

"Feel that? It's a sternum." Damon explained softly. "Solid plate of bone." Suddenly Damon pulled Laura towards him and spun her round so she was standing in front of him with her back to his chest as he gently placed his fingers on her back in a gap through her top. "Right here, just below the rib-cage, next to the spine, that's your way to a vampire's heart." Damon whispered seductively in Elena's ear before he removed his fingers. "I'll do whatever it is you need me to do, Elena." he added as she just stood there unable to move.

Laura had split from her boyfriend around a year ago, and nobody had touched her since in any kind of sexual way since. It wasn't for lack of offers, as despite being forty, Laura was still an attractive woman. But she had a busy life and couldn't find time for a man. That meant the only form of sexual relief she had experienced since was in the form of going solo. Therefore, the moment Damon's fingers softly caressed her body, in such a sensitive area, jolts of electricity shot straight down her spine and into her groin, immediately turning her on. At that moment, Laura really needed Damon to move his hands and touch other areas of her body, especially the area in her panties. However, she quickly put that thought to bed when she turned to look at him. She had never truly appreciated his beauty, such was her distaste for him, but just then she couldn't ignore it, and the desire which washed over her. The sexual attraction in the room between the two of them was palpable.

"No one going to hurt you. Especially not my brother." Damon told her softly, however, all Laura could think about was what it would be like to kiss him, and for him to throw her down on the bench so they could have mindless sex. Before she knew it, her eyes were drawn to his lips, while she licked hers, practically announcing it to the world that she had a sudden urge to kiss him.

Laura quickly shook herself out of her rush of desire by deciding it was time to go. "I need to go and change for the bonfire tonight." She told him. "We're meeting in Ric's classroom to go through the plans at seven. Is that okay with you?" she asked.

"I'll be right there." Damon smiled, as he turned to leave. "See you later." He added.

"See you at school." Laura replied as Damon disappeared through the door.

Once he had left, Laura managed to regain some semblence of self-control. She needed to remind herself exactly who Damon was. He was a mindless serial killer. Just because he smelled gorgeous, was very sweet to her and was extremely hot, did not change that fact one bit. When she watched the show, Damon annoyed the hell out of her, and there was no reason for that to change now. Stefan was Elena's soulmate, not Damon, unless she was told different by Bonnie.

Once Elena had been home, showered and changed, she headed back to school where she was meeting Alaric, Damon and Caroline in Alaric's classroom, to discuss the plan to capture and lock Stefan up, while they waited for Mikael to come and kill Klaus. Laura knew it was futile as killing Klaus wasn't exactly an option, she just wished she could tell them that. However, for the time being, she needed to go along with the plan, until Bonnie was able to find out why Laura was here. In the meantime she needed to go through the plan with everyone.

"I'll lure Stefan away from the bonfire. Distract him..." Laura started

"And I'll shoot him." Alaric added.

"Can't Bonnie just ju-ju him or something?" Damon frowned.

"I'm trying to keep Bonnie out of this." Laura told him truthfully. "She's got her own supernatural issues to deal with right now." She added before turning to Caroline. "Caroline, have you got everything ready?" she asked.

"Yes! I will make sure that the old Forbes jail cell is prepped and ready." Caroline smiled proudly.

"We're forgetting a key player here. Rebekah?" Damon reminded them. "Wherever Stefan goes, the blonde ponytail tends to follow."

"Which is why it's your job to divert her attention." Laura told him.

"How?! She's an Original. Last time I checked, we're out of daggers." Damon asked.

"How about seducing her with your charm." Laura suggested.

"Might have better luck finding the dagger." Alaric snorted.

"Are you ever not going to be mad at me for a day?" Damon asked Ric.

Alaric shook his head. "Doubtful." He replied, just as Tyler walked in to join them.

"Sorry I'm late. What's going on?" Tyler asked.

"We need you to raid your mom's vervain supply. Just enough to keep Stefan down for a while." Laura told him.

"You can't do that to Stefan." Tyler told her,

"Why not?" Caroline asked.

"Tyler, we need to stop him, it's in his best interest." Laura replied.

"Yeah. It's not in Klaus's." Tyler explained.

"But Klaus is the bad guy, Tyler." Caroline reminded him. "You know, why are you acting like some freaky, hybrid, slave minion."

"Uh-oh." Damon said as he looked suspiciously at Tyler.

"What?" Ric asked.

"Klaus made me who I am, Caroline." Tyler explained. "I owe him everything."

"Oh, boy." Damon sighed.

"Okay, can we cool it on the commentary, please." Caroline cried out.

"What's going on?" Laura asked, knowing full well Tyler was sired to Klaus.

Carefully, Damon removed one of the vervain darts from Ric's desk.

" I'm just going to go." Tyler said. He then turned around and started to walk to the door. At that moment, Damon rushed up behind him and injected him with the vervain dart, resulting in Tyler collapsing to the floor.

"What are you doing?!" Caroline cried out in horror.

" He's been sired." Damon replied.

"What?" Ric asked.

"Sired." Damon repeated. "He feels loyal to Klaus because Klaus's blood created him."

"Loyal how?" Laura asked.

"He'll seek acceptance from his master. It's really rare. But maybe not so much in hybrids." Damon explained.

"So how do I fix him?" Caroline frowned.

"Get a new boyfriend." Damon shrugged.

Caroline took Tyler with her as she needed to also get the Forbes cell ready, Ric went to hide out in his truck, leaving Elena and Damon to head out to the party. By the time they arrived, the party was in full swing, and the beer was overflowing. Damon left Laura alone to find Stefan, so they could spring their trap.

Laura spotted Stefan and Rebekah at one of the beer kegs where Rebekah was pouring herself some beer and talking to Stefan at the same time. Laura expected to feel a pang of jealousy, especially considering she knew Stefan had a history and would have a future fling with Rebekah. Laura arrived at the keg to pour herself some beer.

"Excuse me." She said to Rebekah, as she took a cup and poured herself some beer into it.

"Elena, hi. What are you doing?" Stefan asked.

"I'm having fun, Stefan. You know what fun is, right?" She replied as she drank the whole cup of beer in one go.

"All right, take it easy. We both know you're kind of a lightweight." Stefan rolled his eyes.

"Uh-huh. Really? And when was the last time you saw me get drunk?" Laura asked, feeling slightly annoyed by Stefan's audacity. "You think I'm going to let a blood addict tell me how to drink?" She raised an eyebrow at Stefan before storming off.

Laura mingled amongst the crowds for a while. People whose names she didn't know came up to her to chat about school and stuff, but never for very long. She leant up against a tree, watching a guy doing a handstand on a keg while drinking beer, his friends by chanting "Drink, drink, drink." and cheering him on, with which Laura joined in with the fun, until she noticed Stefan leaning up against a tree opposite.

It was at that moment Laura thought he looked like the old Stefan. He smiled at her with a glint in his eye, making her heart melt. He looked handsome in his black t-shirt. However, that thought didn't last as she realized he wasn't looking at her, he was watching her for Klaus, and not because he cared. Laura drank the contents of her cup straight down, just to prove a point to him that she could handle her alcohol, to which he did the same. The expression on his face was like that of a parent scolding a child for misbehaving, something Laura did not appreciate one bit. No matter how much Laura loved Stefan on the show, and thought his time with Klaus was extremely entertaining, it wasn't pleasant to experience it first hand. Therefore she decided to look for the lesser annoying Salvatore, Damon.

Laura spotted him over at the bonfire, talking to Rebekah, showing her how to eat toasted marshmallows. As she watched, she felt a kick in the pit of her stomach, it was then she remembered Damon and Rebekah would soon be spending some quality time in his bed. At that thought she felt another kick, surprising her. It wasn't like Laura liked Damon, but even in this short period of time, she'd gotten used to being the only woman he focused on, and she wanted to keep it that way. Laura frowned, deciding Rebekah was now an unwelcome distraction.

"What's that look?" Stefan asked from behind, making her jump.

"What look?" Laura sighed, trying to stop herself from feeling nervous in Stefan's presence.

"My brother's got his flirt on, and you're jealous." Stefan whispered.

"I'm not jealous!" Laura shook her head.

"It's all right. Be jealous by all means. I'm sure Damon will be thrilled." Stefan said, a bit too jovially for Laura's liking.

" I'm not jealous, Stefan." Laura insisted.

"All right. That's my mistake." Stefan smirked.

Laura emptied her drink once more and left to get another drink. "I'm out of here!" she said, walking towards a keg.

Once at the keg she checked her watch, it was close to nine and Ric should be in place for them to carry out their plan. Damon wouldn't be able to hold Rebekah up for much longer as she'd stake him with the branch she'd been toasting marshmallows with. That meant Laura would need to head on over to the bleachers, something she was not looking forward to, as she was absolutely terrified of heights. What she would have to do next had made her toes curl when she watched it, having to act it out, even in the comfort of a dream, was frightening.

Once the was at the bleachers, Laura sent Ric a text to let him know she was in place. She climbed up and lay down waiting for Stefan. Sure enough, a few moments later, her vampire bodyguard showed up.

"I used to know every constellation. How did I forget them all?" Laura asked.

"You're drunk. You need to go home." Stefan chided.

Laura stood up. "Fine. Unh. Let me find my car."

"You're joking, right?" Stefan asked.

"Uh-oh. It's the fun police. I thought that ripper Stefan was supposed to be the life and soul of the party. Or maybe more like soulless." She sniggered.

"Well, all right, I'm driving you home. Come on." Stefan commanded, as Laura took a deep breath and climbed over the railings, shaking as she did so. "What are you, five? Get down!" Stefan called out.

"Why? Are you scared that I'm going to..." she pretended to almost fall. "Oops. Haha. Nearly! Klaus would be so pissed off with you if I fell." She laughed.

"You're hilarious!" Stefan called out sarcastically.

"Look, Stefan, no hands." Laura cried out, the alcohol giving her confidence to be brave.

Laura lifted her hands and started to fall back, but caught the railing just in time, and began to laugh. She did it again, however, the next time she missed and started to fall. Laura screamed, until she felt Stefan's arms wrapped safelt around her as he had caught her just in time.

"I knew you'd catch me." Laura whispered breathlessly.

They looked at each other, seemingly sharing a moment. Laura wonderd if Stefan would have turned his humanity back on if they hadn't gone ahead with the next step in their plan. Stefan gently lowered Laura to the ground, when suddenly two projectiles hit him in the back. Laura looked over Stefan's shoulder and saw Alaric pointing a vervain dart gun at him, as Stefan fell on the ground unconscious. It was only then when Alaric walked over to Laura.

"You okay?" Ric asked.

"Yeah. I'm...Fine." Laura nodded, suddenly feeling woozy from the alcohol and the fall.

"You look, uh, not sober." Ric frowned.

"I'll be okay. The plan worked. That's all that matters. Let's just get him out of here." She told him, her words slightly slurred.

Laura opened the trunk of Ric's car so he could put Stefan inside, while Laura got inside the car. Alaric closed the trunk and walked around to get in the car next to Laura. as he did so, his foot hit a gas can on the ground.

"I see all the geniuses came out to the bonfire tonight." Ric muttered.

Suddenly the gas on the ground started to burn and the flames moved towards Alaric's car. Soon the car was on fire, with Laura and an unconscious Stefan trapped inside. Ric tried to open the door but he couldn't as the fire had been started by the ghost of Vicki Donovan, who was also making it impossible for the doors or windows to be opened.

"Elena! Elena! Open the door!" Ric called out.

"I can't! It won't open! What the hell?" Laura cried out as she tried her hardest to get out, even though she knew it was a pointless enveavor.

Alaric momentarily disappeared, but then returned with a lacrosse stick and tried to break the door window with it, but it didn't work. Laura tried to break the window with her feet but that didn't work either. At this point, regardless of her knowledge, Laura was beginning to get desperate as the fire was stronger, and she had started coughing as she struggled to breathe. Laura knew now was the last chance to get Stefan to help.

"Stefan!" Laura called out to him, her voice hoarse from the smoke.

Her voice must have been loud enough as he woke up just as Laura was about to collapse. Whether it was Laura's cry for help or a sense of self preservation, Stefan was able to fight through the vervain enough to produce enough strength to break the trunk with his feet. The sudden rush of air helped Laura breathe, but it also meant the car was about to blow at any minute. She moved to the back of the car with Stefan and managed, with the help of Alaric,to gets out.

"Hurry up before it blows!" Ric shouted.

"Wait! Wawe can't leave Stefan." Laura cried as she and Ric grabbed Stefan, and pulled him out of the car. They rushed away from the car, and only just managed to get to safety before car exploded.

Damon must have heard the commotion with his vampire hearing, as moments later he arrived on the scene with his blue Camaro, before driving them back to the boarding house

When they got back, Stefan disappeared downstairs to get some blood and Ric took a shower in one of the other bedrooms. Damon escorted Laura to his bathroom, to treat the a small burn mark she had on her cheek. He lifted her up onto the vanity unit and got a tube of cream out of his first aid box to treat her wound.

"Give it to me. I can do it." Laura insisted.

"No, let me." Damon replied.

"Damon, come on. I'm not a child." Laura sighed.

"Elena, you almost got barbecued. The least I can do is apply first aid." He said softly as he gently applied the cream on her wound on her face with a swab. The intimacy was making Laura feel nervous, but not for the same reasons as she did with Stefan. Damon's sweet, gentle way with her, unnerved her. This was not the reaction she was expecting from herself, and she didn't like it, especially the way she had felt when she saw Damon flirting with Rebekah.

"You played your part of the plan really well tonight." Laura said, trying to distract her thoughts away from wanting to look at his lips.

"Oh, yeah?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"You had Rebekah drooling all over you and your marshmallows." Laura said, trying not to sound bitchy with jealousy.

"Yeah, before she skewered me." Damon huffed. "I thought you were too drunk to notice." He glanced at her.

"I was faking most of it." Laura admitted.

"So was I." Damon whispered back, as they looked at each other for a moment, before Alaric walked in and interrupted them.

"Ready to get going, Elena?" Ric asked.

"Great work tonight, Ric. Sorry about the car, man. Bummer." Damon said to Ric, who was trying to ignore Damon. Laura on the other hand couldn't, she turned back to look at him once more and her heart started to pound. She lowered her head, hoping he Damon didn't notice the blood rushing to her cheeks, but as a vampire, he probably would have sensed it.

"It's okay if you want to be friends with Damon again." Laura said to Ric as they walked towards the door to leave.

"I don't." Ric shook his head.

"I think he misses you." Laura told him as Stefan came out of the living room.

"Well you got me tonight. Definitely wasn't expecting that." Stefan admitted.

"That was the point." Ric said.

"Yeah. You know, you can hate it all you want, but Elena needs me. I'll always protect her. I think you're both better off having me around." Stefan told them as Laura ushered Alaric to the door.

They were just about to walk through the door when Stefan called out to Laura. "Elena, wait. You could have let me die in that fire tonight. Why didn't you?" he asked.

"Because I still have hope." Laura said, turning to face him.

"After everything I've done, you...You still think I'll be able to find my humanity again." Stefan whispered softly.

"Yes, I do. I know you better than anyone, Stefan. And I'm not giving up." She insisted.

"Elena, do you have any idea how pathetic that makes you?" Stefan asked, his voice sound sweet and gentle, completely opposite to the words which came out of his mouth.

"No, Stefan, it makes me strong!" Laura snarled as she punched Stefan in the stomach, driving two stakes inside him, released by the weapon Ric had been teaching her to use. Angrily, Laura removed the wrist weapon and gives it back to Alaric, who looked back at Stefan, smiling with pride before closing the door.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**The changes from the show in this chapter may seem fairly insignificant, but they have the potential to have a huge impact. This chapter also includes one of my favorite Delana scenes.**

The next morning Laura woke up early. Her head was full of what her father had told her, although she was still skeptical about his explanation. If she were dreaming this, he would have probably said the same, and the chances of her conjuring him up in her mind during that particular episode were pretty high. However, if he were telling the truth, then at least she felt comforted by the fact that she could change what she wanted and do what she wanted. And today was going to be the first time she altered something on the show which she already knew with hindsight. The thought of which led to a sense of trepidation and excitement, because although the change was minor, it could have significant consequences later down the line. She just had to make sure they wouldn't be negative ones.

Instead of training before school, Ric and Laura went to visit the caves under the Lockwood cellar so that he could show her the drawings. He had gone into some explanation along the way, what was a surprise was that the Lockwood's knew nothing of the underground tunnels.

"So, the Lockwood's really have no idea that these tunnels are underneath their property?" Laura frowned, waving the flashlight around.

"Careful where you shine that thing. Bats hate the light." Alaric warned her.

"Wait, what?" Laura asked.

"Elena!" Laura heard Damon's voice from behind, so she turned around.

"Boo!" Damon teased as she shone the flashlight in his face, making her jump.

"Ah!" Laura gasped "Damon, you are and ass!" she complained after she'd recovered, although her heart was still racing.

"Scaredy-cat!" Damon joked.

"Just ignore him. That's what I do." Alaric suggested, walking on ahead.

"So, you really can't get inside?" Laura asked Damon.

"No. Seems even the ancient Lockwood's were anti-vampire." Damon shrugged.

"How ancient?" Laura frowned.

Damon gestured towards the cave. "See for yourself." He said as they walked into the cave with the drawings on the walls.

"Well, this is as far as I get to go." Damon told them, propping himself up against the wall of the entrance and folding his arms, while Laura shone the flashlight at the images on the walls.

"What is all this?" Laura asked in awe.

"Well, as far as I can tell, it's a story. In simple, archaeological terms, it's a really, really old story." Alaric told her as he pointed at the wall. "That right there, is the moon cycle." He said before pointing towards another drawing. "A man, a wolf."

"A werewolf." Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, it's the 'Lockwood Diaries: Pictionary-Style'." Damon chimed in sarcastically.

"But I thought the Lockwood's came here with the Original Founders in the 1860s." Laura frowned.

"I don't know. Maybe the Lockwood's did, but according to this wall, these werewolves have been here a lot longer than that." Alaric told her.

"How long?" Laura asked.

"Long. It gets better. Show her, Ric." Damon replied as Ric pointed towards what Laura recognized to be the names of the Original family, although she kept that part to herself.

"Names. They're not native. They're written in Runic, a Viking script." Ric explained.

"Vikings?" Laura tried her best to look puzzled. "How do you know they are names?"

"This name here." Ric pointed to one of the symbols. "I translated it and it reads Niklaus." he told her.

"Klaus." Laura nodded in understanding.

"And Elijah...and Rebekah." Alaric went on.

"These are the names of the Original Family?" Laura sighed.

"Carved into a cave that's been here since way before the founding of Mystic Falls. Or even the entire New World, for that matter." Alaric told her as Laura began to look around, trying to find the image she wanted to point out.

"Surely, this has gotta be one of Klaus's fakes." Laura said, pretending to appear in the dark, when in fact she was looking for something more specific, which she eventually spotted.

"That's what I said." Damon agreed.

"That could be true, except the last name up here made us think otherwise." Alaric pointed upwards.

"What's the name?" Laura asked.

"Mikael." Alaric replied.

"Mikael...Mikael, as in, the vampire hunter who knows how to kill Klaus?" Laura said, trying to sound impressed.

"Yep. I now like to call him "Papa Original"." Damon said smugly as Ric began to take photos of the drawings.

"Ric." Laura called out. "Come and have a look at this one." She said, as Ric walked over to her with his camera.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Is it my imagination, or is there something different about this one than the rest?" Laura asked.

Ric looked at the image carefully, before checking the other similar images. "The others have more dots." He frowned.

"What does it mean?" Laura said.

"I don't know yet." Ric shook his head. "I'll take pictures of all of the symbols and see what patterns I can find, maybe I'll work out why this one is slightly different." He said, holding the camera up and taking a picture.

Once they'd finished, they returned to Ric's apartment, where Ric quickly printed the pictures out and began to sort them out to try and make sense of them. In the meantime, Damon had volunteered to help Laura with her training, while Ric gave them a running commentary of what he was doing.

"These images tell a story...to learn the story, you have to decipher these images." Ric explained as Damon effortlessly disarmed Laura, who was trying her hardest to stake him, and she really meant it.

"Sloppy!" Damon grinned as Laura grabbed the stake.

"Shut up! I'm new to this." Laura complained as she continued to kick and punch Damon, which felt incredibly liberating. The only thing which annoyed her was that not only did it not hurt him, he seemed to find her struggles hilariously funny.

"Ghost of Christmas Past Mason Lockwood set up the cave and led us to a weapon that can kill Klaus." Damon called out to Ric.

"Yeah, but doesn't Mikael have a weapon?" Laura asked, getting distracted by the conversation.

"Yes. Which probably means the wall will lead us to Mikael, who we have already found...and lost." Damon said as he quickly overwhelmed Laura again. "Bang! You're dead!" He said, pulling her in tight and pretending to nibble Laura's neck, which much to her annoyance seemed to send electric pulses right down to her tummy and between her thighs, sending her heart racing. Hoping Damon hadn't noticed the changes in her body and how he seemed to physically affect her, Laura pushed him away and walked over to Alaric at the desk.

"These images at the very least might tell us what that weapon is." Ric suggested.

"Then all we have to do is find out what they mean." Laura offered. "Including the odd ones out."

"Fine! Fine! If I am being irritatingly optimistic like you two...how do you suppose we do that?" Damon asked.

"Well, if it really is the story about the Original Family living here, then we have to go straight to the source!" Laura smiled. "Anyway, it's time for school." She reminded Ric, before turning to Damon. "And you are on Stefan-watch duty." She reminded him.

"Yes ma'am." Damon saluted Laura sarcastically before leaving her and Ric alone.

"You want a ride to school?" Laura smiled, knowing Ric still hadn't gotten a new car yet.

"If you don't mind." Ric smiled as they set off to school.

After school, Laura made her way to the meeting point for the cheerleading squad, as she knew they'd be training. She watched on as Rebekah showed off her moves to the rest of the stunned squad. However, she stopped when she noticed Laura approaching.

"You! Goody." Rebekah said flatly.

"I was hoping we could talk." Laura said coolly.

"About what? Stefan?" Rebekah asked. "Don't worry, I'm off him until he starts treating me better. In fact, you should probably take a page out of my book, if I'm being honest." She added.

"Actually, I'd rather talk about this." Laura said, holding up one of the photo's Ric had taken, it was the one with Rebekah's name written in Runic on the cave wall. "I'm curious why you and Klaus have spent a thousand years running from your father." She explained, before putting the photo away.

"I should get back to the girls. Homecoming's right around the corner." Rebekah said as she turned to leave.

"Well then, I guess we'll have to ask Mikael when we wake him." Laura grinned.

Rebekah stopped suddenly and turned around. "You're bluffing! You don't know where he is. No one does." She said.

"So, then who's rotting in that old cemetery in Charlotte?" Laura folded her arms smugly.

"If you wake Mikael, we are all doomed!" Rebekah warned her.

"So then, tell me." Laura cocked her head to one side, as if she were ready to listen.

"Why do you want to know?" Rebekah asked.

"Why don't you want me to wake him?" Laura replied.

"I need to get back to the girls." Rebekah shook herself to try to appear to have gained the upper hand, before walking back towards the squad, even though it was clear she was shaken by what she'd heard.

Laura was one her way back to Ric's apartment when Damon called her to check to see if Rebekah had spilled the beans.

"She's going to tell me. She's scared of him, Damon. I saw her face. I just need to gain her trust." Laura told him.

"Well, make sure she doesn't put you into a wheelchair when she finds out you lied to her." Damon warned.

"I've got this, Damon. If we can figure out a way to kill Klaus, Stefan will be free of his compulsion." Laura said optimistically, even though she knew the truth. "So...how does he look?" she asked as she walked into Ric's loft.

"Mmm...pasty and pouty." Damon replied.

"He'll have to get over it. Call me later." Laura said, hanging up and turning to Alaric. "Rebekah will come around, you'll see." She told him confidently.

"You're sure about that? I mean a thousand-year-old vampire, I'm sure, has learned the art of patience." Alaric warned her, just as Laura received a text message saying _Come over for a chat. Rebekah_.

"She's a thousand-year-old vampire, who's joined the cheerleader squad...There is a whole different set of rules that play here, Ric. I got this." Laura said with a smile on her face as she held up the phone to show him the text.

"Good luck." Ric grinned as Laura left and headed for the Salvatore boarding house to meet with Rebekah.

When Laura stepped inside the house, she was greeted by the sound of music, while Rebekah walked into the foyer with champagne glasses in her hand.

"Hey! What's up?" Rebekah greeted her cheerfully.

"You invited me over? To talk?" Laura reminded her.

"All right girls, have at it!" Rebekah called out to six girls, who were each dressed in various jewel-toned colored homecoming dresses as they walked in the room. "Okay, now twirl please." She commanded as they twirled around to show off the dresses.

"You compelled your own private runway show?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"I need a Homecoming dress. So, what do you think? Pick one." Rebekah asked.

Deciding to just go with Rebekah's plan instead of fighting like Elena did, Laura opted to join in. Therefore, she looked at the dresses carefully, trying to remember which one Rebekah wore. "The...red one." She eventually suggested.

"Good choice." Rebekah smiled before turning to the girls. "Go away. Remember nothing." She compelled them as they left, and Rebekah picked up her champagne glass and walked over to Laura. You learn what I allow you to learn. Is that clear?" she asked.

"Sure." Laura nodded as Rebekah walked past her and up the stairs, to which Laura followed.

When at the top, Rebekah opened the door to what was Stefan's room and walked in, while Laura followed her. "How fun is this...?" Rebekah grinned as she started opening Stefan's drawers.

"We shouldn't be here..." Laura started.

"Course we should! Come on, like you've never wanted to snoop." Rebekah scoffed as she held up Stefan's underwear. "Boxer briefs. A lot has changed since the twenties." She shook her head.

"Are you gonna go through his stuff all night or are you gonna tell me your story?" Laura folded her arms.

"Ah...you really are no fun. What do you want to know?" Rebekah asked.

"Well, Elijah said that your father was a landowner in Europe. How did you guys end up here?" Laura replied, knowing she was going to have to sit through a story she'd seen on TV many times.

Rebekah continued to go through Stefan's stuff. "My parents had just started a family, when a plague struck their homeland. They lost a child to it. They wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate." She told her.

"So, how did you end up here? This part of the world hadn't even been discovered." Laura frowned.

Rebekah laughed. "Not by anyone in your history books. But my mother knew the witch Ayana, who heard from the spirits of a mystical land where everyone was healthy...blessed by the gifts of speed and strength. That lead my family here, where we lived amongst those people."

"The werewolves?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"To us, they were just our neighbors. My family lived in peace with them for over 20 years, during which time my family had more children, including me." Rebekah

"You make it sound so normal." Laura smiled.

"It was. Rebekah replied wistfully, as she went on to explain what had happened to them and how they became Vikings.

Laura already knew the story, she poked and prodded Rebekah with questions to get more information out of her along the way. However mid-way through, they were disturbed by Laura's phone.

"You better get that. That'll be Damon checking up on you." Rebekah said.

Laura answered her phone, seeing the caller ID and realizing Rebekah was right. "Damon?" she answered.

"Hey!" Damon replied, although Laura could barely make him out with the noise in the background of Damon's location, to which Laura remembered was a bar.

"Damon, where are you?" Laura asked.

"No idea, but I'm pretty sure I'm overdressed...Still standing?" Damon asked.

"I wouldn't have answered the phone if I wasn't." Laura replied sarcastically. "Of course, I'm fine, but I can't talk right now." She told him, when she heard Stefan's voice over Damon's phone telling Damon he'd be at the bar. "Is that Stefan?" she asked.

"Yeah, I kinda went off a bit. Don't worry. I know what I'm doing." Damon assured her, and although Laura knew Damon had done the right thing, she was aware Elena wouldn't agree, so she had to play the part.

"Damon! How could you let him out?" she asked angrily.

"I got his back, Elena." Damon told her before hanging up.

Laura looked at her phone aghast, before deciding to calm down and leave Stefan to Damon while she would deal with Rebekah, who she was actually feeling sorry for. In the show, she really liked Rebekah, and loved her in the Originals. She thought Elena really did the dirty on her, and maybe it was something Laura could remedy, maybe even become friends with her. But for the time being, it was going back to story time and the origins of the Original family.

When Laura returned her attention back to Rebekah, she saw that she was lying on the bed, going through one of Stefan's diaries. "Can we get on with the story?" Laura asked.

Instead, Rebekah got up and picked up a photo of Elena and Stefan from one of the tables.

"Honestly, I don't get you two as a couple." Rebekah frowned.

"Why would you? You don't know anything about him." Laura said.

"I know exactly who he is. He's a vampire. We're a predatory species." Rebekah reminded her as she leaned in close to Laura's face. "We don't have time to care about humans and their silly little lives." She added.

"So, what was the runway show about? Cause you don't care about the Homecoming Dance...You know what, I'm just gonna go." Laura shook her head and started to get up to leave.

"You haven't even heard half the story." Rebekah said quickly, clearly showing her desperation for a friend, making Laura feel even more sorry for her.

"So, tell me!" Laura folded her arms.

Rebekah sighed. "The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give. It belonged to the Original Witch." She told her.

"The one who put the hybrid curse on Klaus?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Not just the hybrid curse. She's the one who turned us into vampires." Rebekah said sadly.

"So why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?" Laura asked.

"When Nik made his first human kill, it triggered his werewolf gene. With that, he became my father's greatest shame." Rebekah shook her head.

"Yeah. Elijah told me about that. Your mother had had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't Mikael's son." Laura frowned.

"She tried to make it right." Rebekah explained. "She put the hybrid curse on Nik to suppress his werewolf side, and then she turned her back on him. But Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride. As a vampire, that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village. Then he came home and killed her." She said, her voice wobbling slightly.

"Mikael killed your mother?" Laura asked softly, moved by how upset Rebekah truly was.

"He said she broke his heart so he would break hers. He tore it from her chest as Nik watched." Rebekah told her. "Afterwards, my father took off in a rage, and the rest of my family scattered. Nik stayed, so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother. We stick together as one. Always and forever." She said proudly.

"Always and forever...even though he locked you in a coffin for ninety years?" Laura frowned.

"We're vampires. Our emotions are heightened. I'm stubborn, Elijah moral, and Nik...Nik has no tolerance for those who disappoint him. Over a thousand years as a family we've all made that mistake at least once. I've made it several times." Rebekah shrugged.

"But you still love him?" Laura asked, trying to sound surprised.

"He's my brother. And I'm immortal. Should I spend an eternity alone instead?" Rebekah asked, before realizing she'd opened up too much. "You've heard the story, it's time to go. I said leave, Elena! I don't know what you're up to, but I'm no longer playing along." She warned.

"I'm just looking for one good reason why we shouldn't wake Mikael." Laura told her.

"And I've given you a thousand! But you will anyway. I know you want him to help you kill my brother, I'm not stupid." Rebekah said angrily.

"It's no secret that I want Klaus dead. He has a hold over Stefan's life, and over mine." Laura shrugged.

"Do what you need. Wake Mikael at your own peril. But make no mistake, if you come after my brother, I will rip you apart. And I get my temper from my father. Now leave!" Rebekah shouted, to which Laura gladly obeyed, because no matter how much Laura liked Rebekah, the original sister was truly terrifying when angry.

Laura left the boarding house and contacted Ric and Bonnie to meet her at the old Lockwood cellar for her to explain what she knew. Ric had enlisted the help of Bonnie to decipher the drawings, while Laura quizzed Rebekah.

"We, uh, filled in what we could." Ric told her as he began to stick post-its to the different symbols "A Vampire, werewolf, slaughter, mayhem, etc." he explained.

"That's the white oak tree that was used in the spell to create the vampires...which means that was when they burned down the tree, destroying the only way that they could be killed." Laura said. means?" she asked.

"Okay. so, tree equals weapon, sort of. We already knew that." Alaric nodded.

"Although we have another one that looks almost the same, but with a different amount of dots. Did you work out what it is?" Laura asked, but Ric shook his head.

"Not yet." He replied, however, Bonnie looked at Laura suspiciously as she knew Laura had far more knowledge than them and had pointed it out for a reason. "Also, we're are not sure about is this." Ric carried on. "We've got the witch symbol, and what looks like a bleeding heart. Upside down figures usually signified death, of some kind." He frowned.

"Mikael killed the witch by ripping out her heart." Laura explained. "But...why is that one connected to the witch's death?" she frowned, pointing to the image which represented Klaus.

"We don't know. We haven't gotten that far." Bonnie shook her head.

"Oh my god...I think I know what it means. It's just that Rebekah doesn't know the real story." Laura gasped as if she'd made a startling revelation. "I don't think Mikael killed their mom; it was Klaus." She said. "I gotta go and tell Rebekah. Maybe she'll help us." She suggested.

"It's worth a shot." Bonnie agreed, as Laura took the photo's she needed and left to head back to the boarding house.

When Laura got back to the boarding house, she found Rebekah in the parlor pouring herself a glass of scotch. Laura walked over to her with the photos of the cave drawings.

"I thought I told you to leave. Twice." Rebekah snapped.

"How do you know it was Mikael who killed your mother?" Laura frowned.

"Nik was there. He told me." Rebekah replied.

"He lied to you." Laura said.

"And how do you know that?" Rebekah asked.

"The cave where you carved your family's names is covered in symbols." Laura explained as she showed Rebekah the photos. This is the story of your family: how your parents arrived, how they made peace, the spell that turned them into vampires, and this." She pointed to the one which represented Klaus. "This is the symbol for hybrid. It's a combination of the werewolf and the vampire symbol. And this is the one for your mother." She said.

"Her necklace." Rebekah nodded.

"And this is the story of her death." Laura said sadly before pointing out the story. "The hybrid killed the Original Witch. It wasn't Mikael, Rebekah, it was Klaus." She told her.

"No! No, he wouldn't." Rebekah cried out.

"It makes sense. She was the one who put the curse on him and made sure he would be the only one of his kind, and then she rejected him, even though it wasn't his fault." Laura explained. "With the werewolf gene comes aggression and violence...when he turned, all of that was heightened. He killed her, Rebekah. And then he made up this entire lie about your father, so that he wouldn't lose you." She said.

"These mean nothing!" Rebekah screamed. "They're just stupid drawings, done by stupid people who had no idea who my family was!" She took the photos and tore them to pieces, before throwing them into the burning fireplace.

"Then why are you so upset?" Laura asked softly.

"Why are you doing this to me? I've done nothing to you!" Rebekah shook her head.

"Klaus killed your mother. He has a hold on you, on me, on everyone. He has for a thousand years. We have to make it stop!" Laura protested just as Rebekah grabbed her by the throat and vamped out.

"Shut up! Shut up! Don't talk anymore! Nothing!" Rebekah screamed before stopping and slowly calming down a bit, letting go of Laura. The she began to gasp with grief. She fell onto her knees and started to sob, while all Laura could do was look at her and feel guilty for what she'd done. Deciding she'd done enough talking for today, and realizing Rebekah needed to be alone, Laura quietly slipped out and headed home to go to bed.

Two hours later, Laura had gone home, had something to eat and showered. She'd just finished brushing her teeth and was ready for bed. As she walked out of the bathroom next to her bedroom in her pajamas, much to her annoyance, she found Damon lying on her bed. Laura vaguely remembered the scene, but she'd forgotten when it happened. She knew the Delana fandom loved it, but she hadn't managed to see the appeal, and at that moment, she was so tired, she really didn't care.

"Uh...Damon! Seriously?" Laura complained.

"We got Mikael." Damon announced proudly.

"What? How?" Laura frowned.

"No idea. I guess Katherine came through. Plan's in motion." Damon said smugly. "See, I told you I had it. Go ahead. Kick, yell, scream. Sure, you've been planning your rant all day." He grinned.

"I'm not gonna yell at you." Laura sighed.

"Why not? I went behind you back. Freed Stefan. And you know what? It backfired. He's an even bigger dick than ever...just now, he's a dick that's on our side." Damon told her.

"I'm not mad. I'm really tired. I just...I want to go to bed." Laura complained as she started to pull at her comforter to get Damon to get to move, but he wouldn't budge.

"You know, I think Mikael's weapon is a stake." Damon mused, completely ignoring Laura's attempts to pull the comforter out from under him. "Cause he mentioned something about it..."

Realizing her efforts were futile as Damon was not going to move, Laura pulled open her comforter so she could lay down on the available side of the bed; leaving Damon still laying where he was.

"Well, they must have carved it from the white oak tree before they burned it down." Laura suggested.

"So, I was right. After all that, the wall lead us to Mikael." Damon smiled.

Laura sighed. "It lead us to more than that. I think I got Rebekah on our side, too." She told him.

"Really? What 'd you learn from her?" Damon asked.

"I learned, that she's just a girl, who lost her mom too young, and she loves blindly and recklessly." Laura looked at Damon in the eyes for several moments, as she realized that she could have been describing Damon or even herself with that description. "But when it's all said and done, there's nothing more important than the bond of family." She added as Damon turned to face her.

"Well, you should tell that to my brother." Damon shook his head.

"I'm not mad at you for letting him out, Damon." Laura sighed. "I think that you're gonna be the one to save him. It won't be because he loves me." Laura whispered. "It'll be because he loves you. Can I tell you the rest tomorrow?" she asked.

Damon nodded and smiled softly. "Sure." He said as Laura closed her eyes to go to sleep.

Before she dozed off, she thought about the conversation she'd just had with Damon, who had yet to leave. Although she'd never seen the appeal when watching the show, being in bed with him and being in Elena's position made her feel very different towards the experience.

Laura had never married because her expectations were too high, and she was always disappointed by the men she had met. Whenever she'd spent the night with any of her previous long-term boyfriends, she'd always hoped that they could go to bed at night and sometimes just talk about their day and cuddling instead of resorting to sex and sleep. Laura took in a deep breath, letting Damon's scent wash over her. At that moment, not only did she get why the Delena fandom loved the scene so much, but she also just wished it were possible for her to cuddle up to Damon. Because, as much as he annoyed her, she couldn't ignore the effect he had on her. Something inside her was stirring, something she hadn't felt this strongly in her entire forty years of life, and it was beginning to scare her. Even though she didn't want to admit it, she knew she was slowly starting to fall for Damon, and she didn't know how to stop it.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

The next days, the plan had been set in motion to kill Klaus, although Laura knew perfectly well it wouldn't work. Rebekah had finally agreed to go through with getting rid of her brother, and Mikael had just arrived to go through the last-minute preparations. All they had to do was call Klaus and lure him into their trap. However, during this time, Laura had been coming up with numerous plans of her own. She just wanted to run through them with Bonnie. But in the meantime, she needed to help with the destruction of Mikael.

"So, let's say that Mikael followed Elena in here. He tried to grab her, so he could use her as bait." Stefan suggested, walking into the library.

"And you what? Vervained him?" Laura raised a suspicious eyebrow.

"No, _we_ vervained him! This guy is an Original. To make it realistic." Damon frowned.

"Okay, fine. _We_ vervained him." Stefan conceded. "And in the process discovered that he had a dagger."

"Which he was going to use on Rebekah, but instead..." Laura started.

"We drove it through his heart." Stefan grinned.

"And what happens when he asks to see Mikael's body?" Laura asked.

"Good point! You my brother have been compelled to do what Klaus says. So, the idea is to lure him back here and kill him...last thing we need is you getting tripped up and tongue-tied." Damon folded his arms.

"Well, don't look at me. I am just in charge of getting him back here." Stefan shrugged.

"Klaus is smart. If we tell him that we killed Mikael, he'll want proof." Laura said.

"Then I shall be dead." Mikael interjected.

"What if he wants to see you in person?" Laura frowned.

"Well that means our plan is working. Klaus will absolutely want to see my body. You lure him here, and I "will kill him." Mikael smiled.

"With what? Those daggers won't work on him." Stefan narrowed his eyes.

"Well, I'm in possession of a stake fashioned from the wood of the ancient white oak tree. The one that left these ashes when it burned." Mikael told them.

"Where is it?" Stefan asked as Mikael is dipped a dagger in the ashes of the white oak tree.

"Not here. The knowing of its location is my insurance policy." Mikael scoffed.

"Against what?" Stefan frowned.

"You leaving this in my heart. You see, a vampire can't dagger an original without dying. So...it falls to you." Mikael said as her handed the dagger to Laura.

"Y... You want _me_ to dagger you?" Laura asked.

"Klaus will leave nothing to chance- especially when it comes to trust." Mikael told her.

Laura hesitated for a moment, it hadn't occurred to her she would actually have to kill people while she was here, although Mikael wouldn't be dead for long. The thought of pushing a piece of metal into a person's body made her feel ill, however, she knew it was not only essential, but temporary. Laura took a deep breath and plunged the dagger into Mikael's heart, feeling the resistance of his body as the dagger invaded it, to take his life from him. This left Laura a little shaken. Elena may not have had issues with doing this, as she'd almost become accustomed to the violent way of life she led, but Laura had only been around vampires for about two weeks, and it was all a bit overwhelming.

Meanwhile, Stefan had already called Klaus, who apparently was in Portland.

"Your father is dead." Stefan told him. He then proceeded to go through what had happened to Mikael. Eventually, Klaus must have asked for Rebekah, as Stefan handed the phone over to her.

"Hello Nik." Rebekah said. "It's true. He's finally out of our lives for good. I miss you. I'm miserable here." She continued with their conversation. "Good. I'll see you then, brother." She eventually hung up the and turned to the others. "He bought it. He's coming home." She said sadly.

"Now- was that easy or what?" Damon grinned.

"Let's just get this over with." Laura sighed as she pulled the dagger out of Mikael's chest.

The next day, Laura was rummaging through Elena's closet while Bonnie was sitting on her bed with Alaric's photos of the ancient Viking drawings.

Laura sighed. "I hate everything in Elena's closet. I have nothing to wear to Homecoming." She complained.

"So, don't go. Let's stay home order takeout and over analyze ancient hieroglyphic thingies with Alaric." Bonnie suggested. "Although you probably know what they all mean." She shrugged.

"I only know some of them." Laura said as she continued to look through Elena clothes.

"And the one you pointed out while we were in the cave?" Bonnie raised an eyebrow. "What is so special about that one?" she asked.

Laura turned around and joined Bonnie on the bed. "Okay, so we can't tell anyone what we know until we've figured out how to break this to everyone without causing death and destruction everywhere. You promise?"

Bonnie looked intrigued. "Sure. What is it?" she asked.

"There's another white oak tree." Laura told her. "It was pulled down by the Salvatore logging company and used to build Wickery Bridge."

"We can make other stakes?" Bonnie asked, wide-eyed.

Laura nodded. "But there's a problem with making stakes. You see, when you kill one Original, their entire line of vampires die along with them. Everyone they turned, all the way down to the ones we know and love." she explained.

"You know who sired Caroline's line, don't you?" Bonnie frowned.

Laura nodded again. "It was Klaus. We can't kill him." She said.

"Then we need to stop the whole thing tonight." Bonnie panicked, but Laura shook her head.

"I've made sure nothing changes for tonight." She explained. "Klaus doesn't die. But Stefan is freed from his compulsion." She smiled a Luke-warm smile, knowing that Stefan would still take time to regain his humanity.

"Then how do we get rid of Klaus?" Bonnie frowned.

"We need to stop his heart, like Mikael." Laura suggested. "We need to speak to the witch who cast the original spell to desiccate Mikael and do the same to Klaus."

"And I take it you know who this witch is?" Bonnie asked as Laura started to fidget. "What is it?" Bonnie frowned.

"It was your mom who cast the original spell." Laura sighed. "We need to find your mom."

Bonnie nodded uncomfortably. "Is this how things go down?" she asked.

Laura shook her head. "I'm trying to avoid certain things happening." She said.

"Are you sure you can change stuff that much?" Bonnie frowned. "Because Grams told me some stuff about you, and if you change too much too soon, the consequences might be irreversible, and you won't be able to go back, even if you really wanted to." She said.

"I spoke to my dad." Laura grinned. "He said I will get the chance to go home, even though I might not want to take it." She then frowned. "He also said I always have been Elena Gilbert."

"This is what Grams told me." Bonnie started. "A doppelganger's soul is taken to the Plane of Preparation. There they are raised by two guardian witches who have very specific special psychic powers, allowing them to see the future and to be able to manipulate the world surrounding the soul of the doppelganger to make them believe they have lived for forty years. They take over the real body of the doppelganger once the body reaches eighteen." She explained. "They manipulate your early years to mirror that of the doppelganger, although there will be minor differences. Then at some point they introduce you to your body through a tv show. They give an option of life if you choose to go down the same path and make the same choices as the tv version of you would make. But you don't have to stick with those choices." She said.

"But dad said I could go home." Laura frowned.

"In theory, if you change nothing, then an opportunity will arise to return." Bonnie confirmed. "But the world you will be going back to won't be real, and I don't know if you will survive. Nobody has ever chosen to go back before." She shrugged.

"Did your Grams tell you anything else?" Laura asked sadly.

"There's more, but I haven't gone through all of the information Grams left me." Bonnie admitted. "I've kinda not been in the mood, with what happened with Jeremy and all." She said sadly.

"You know that you can talk to me about Jeremy, right?" Laura said sympathetically.

"I don't need to talk about it. He fell in love with his ghost girlfriend and lied about it. What's done is done." Bonnie shrugged.

"You have to talk about it. He hurt you, Bonnie. I am mad at him, too." Laura said. "Remember, I'm not Elena."

"As far as he is concerned, he is still your little brother. All you can do is yell at him a little, teach him a life lesson. You can't really be mad like I am mad." Bonnie said. "Just like Rebekah is with Klaus right now."

"Bonnie..." Laura pleaded.

"And Laura, you only know the show version of me, and even though you are Elena, you've only been her for a couple of weeks, you don't really know me that well yet. So, no I can't really talk to you about it." Bonnie shook her head.

"I could offer you some consolation." Laura smiled. "I could tell you about the love of your life." She offered.

"I don't want to know anything about my future as you could still accidentally change it. So, don't get my hopes up of a happy ending." Bonnie shook her head.

"Can I discuss the things I do know about with you?" Laura sighed.

"If you know how to deal with a bad guy, then yes I will cover for you and pretend I found the information out in an old grimoire or something." Bonnie sighed. "But it is best I don't know too much. Instead, maybe you should focus on changing one thing and look to how we can go about doing that, that is if you are dead set on changing things." She suggested.

Laura had already considered what she wanted to change. Something she'd felt had been a problem throughout a couple of the seasons of the show, when someone important was missing, and now was the right time to change it. Everything else she wanted to change, would happen naturally as a consequence of this piece of remedial action.

"There is something I want to change." Laura told Bonnie.

"What?" Bonnie frowned.

"I want to save Ric from Esther." She replied.

"Who's Esther?" Bonnie asked.

"The Original witch." Laura smiled.

Bonnie frowned. "Well let's hope the Original witch thinks you are still Elena and not Laura, because otherwise we might have bigger problems." She said.

The next day, Laura went over to the Salvatore's to help Damon and Stefan get everything ready for the Homecoming trap. Stefan's job was to keep Klaus busy, while Damon was unsuccessfully, going to try to kill Klaus. Stefan had to be kept in the dark about their plans, so he left Damon and Laura alone to get on with their preparations, which was currently building weapons in Damon's bathroom, which had become Laura's favorite place in this new world.

"We can't trust Rebekah not to turn on us." Laura warned Damon.

"Oh really? Cause these Original vampires are usually so reliable." Damon replied, his voice dripping witch sarcasm, which made him sound quite funny, however, Laura managed not to laugh as they were handling grenades.

"Rebekah may be mad at Klaus now, but he is her brother, that anger won't last." Laura sighed.

"Her lying, mama- killing, dagger- happy brother. Wolfsbane is ready." Damon announced.

"There are too many things that can go wrong with this plan. Too many people that can make it go wrong." Laura shook her head.

"Well, I am formulating a secret contingency plan." Damon said smugly.

"Really? What is it?" Laura asked.

"Well, if I told you, then it wouldn't be a secret." Damon said, nodding his head towards the door. Laura turned and saw Stefan entering the room.

"I need to borrow a tie." Stefan announced.

"You have your own ties." Damon frowned.

"Hm... I'm a hundred and sixty-two years old and I'm going to a Homecoming Dance. I need better ties." Stefan insisted.

"You could not go." Laura shrugged, surprisingly meaning it. Stefan had been getting on her nerves, more and more lately. She knew this wasn't the real Stefan, but she was going to have difficulties adjusting to that person as the man, or vampire she now knew, was completely different. Damon on the other hand, although at times also annoying, was turning out to be much nicer than he came across on tv. He was also surprisingly sexier than he looked on screen, which was annoying Laura because she'd despised Damon for so long, she was going to have to admit defeat to the Delana fandom.

"I'm compelled to protect you. And if I look at your track record at high school dances - it's pretty tragic. With my luck you'll go and get yourself murdered by the Homecoming Queen..." Stefan trailed off, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he left Damon and Laura to find a tie, much Laura's relief.

Laura picked up one of the wolfsbane grenades to fasten it, however, Damon tapped her hand.

"Ah- ah! No!" Damon tutted.

"I know how to do it! Alaric taught me!" Laura argued as Damon slowly took the grenade away from her.

"Elena! If this thing blows up in our face- just remember only one of us heals quickly." Damon reminded her, just as Stefan returned with one of Damon's ties.

"Ah, please tell me that you have a better plan than wolfsbane grenades?" Stefan sighed.

"Never your mind, brother. The less you know the better." Damon replied.

"My freedom from Klaus rests entirely upon you two executing your plan perfectly. So, excuse me if I'm a bit cynical." Stefan protested.

"You're the one that we should be worried about. If Klaus asks you one wrong question, we're screwed." Laura said.

"You do have reason to worry, but if I look back in our history of epic plan failures, it's usually because one of us let our humanity get in the way. Upon taking odds on how this thing goes down, it's certainly not gonna be me who screws it up. I'll see you at Homecoming. I can't wait." Stefan said in a sing-song voice, which irritated Laura. Fortunately, he left just after that.

"You know something Damon." Laura shook her head. "He is really starting to piss me off. We need to free him from Klaus before I stake him." She groaned.

"Get in line." Damon laughed.

Once they'd finished with the wolfsbane grenades, Laura's next task was to take Rebekah out of the equation. However, Laura was going to tackle Rebekah slightly differently to how Elena had gone about things. Laura didn't want to make an enemy of Rebekah as she liked her. So, although she was still going to dagger her, she was going to give an alternative reason for doing so.

Laura walked into Stefan's room, where Rebekah was putting the finishing touches to her outfit.

"Getting a head start, huh?" Laura asked.

"Embarrassing truth? This is my first high school dance." Rebekah said coyly.

"Never ever?" Laura frowned, trying to sound shocked.

"I never really had time for high school before. Nik and I were always moving around, running. Anyway- I didn't want to leave anything to chance. Have you heard anymore from him?" Rebekah asked, her voice sounding a little nervous.

"No. But I'm sure that when he does return, he'll make sure we all know about it." Laura shrugged.

"And Damon and my father are all set with their plan?" Rebekah said sadly.

Laura nodded. "Yes." She said.

"Don't tell me. I don't want to know, I just... I want to go to the dance and leave the rest to Mikael." Rebekah swallowed.

"I know this is really hard for you. So, thanks for helping us get Klaus back into town." Laura smiled.

"Just be careful. I've been running for a thousand years for a reason. Mikael is not a good person and he definitely can't be trusted. No one in my family can." Rebekah warned her, as tears began to appear in her eyes.

"Are you okay?" Laura frowned.

"I've spent my whole life loving and hating my brother with equal measure. I never thought that I'd be the one to help drive a stake through his heart. No tears, I don't want to ruin my makeup." Rebekah said as she turned her back to Laura and looked at her reflection in the mirror again.

"How do I look?" Rebekah asked.

"You look amazing! But you're missing one thing." Laura said knowingly as she took the necklace out of her pocket.

"My mother's necklace." Rebekah gasped.

"You should wear it tonight. I mean, after all, it is yours. May I?" Laura offered.

Rebekah turned around, looked in the mirror, and nodded at Laura.

"Thank you." Rebekah smiled gratefully.

"I really like you Rebekah." Laura smiled as she began to fasten the necklace. "Which is why I have to protect you from Klaus, just in case anything goes wrong with the plan." She said as she quickly took the dagger from her back pocket and drove it through Rebekah's back and into her heart. "I'm so sorry. I can't leave anything to chance either." She apologized, as Rebekah turned grey, before collapsing to the ground.

Laura checked to make sure Rebekah was dead before texting Damon to let him know what she'd done, which turned out to be harder than she anticipated, as her hands were shaking. She then sat on the bed and waited for Damon to arrive. Fortunately, he only took a couple of minutes, completely prepared with a sheet to wrap Rebekah in.

"In the back! Harsh!" Damon frowned as he wrapped Rebekah's body up.

"It had to be done. Rebekah could never be completely trusted." Laura said, checking her hands, which were still shaking.

"Hey, I'm not judging you. It's very- 'Katherine' of you." Damon grinned, sitting down next to Laura, taking her hands in his and trying to steady them.

"That's not the way to make me feel better about what I've just done, Damon." Laura protested.

"It was a compliment. Sort of..." Damon frowned, rubbing the back of her hands, which Laura found extremely soothing, and seemed to do the trick in calming her down.

"Stefan's right. Someone's gonna let their humanity screw this whole thing up. And it's probably gonna be me." Laura sighed.

"Elena, you just daggered somebody. You will be fine." Damon assured her.

"Yeah- but I still feel bad about it. I care too much, that's the problem, Damon." Laura shook her head.

"If it makes you feel any better, she's not really dead." Damon said brightly, causing Laura to laugh, before changing the subject.

"Do you honestly trust Mikael?" Laura asked him.

"Nope." Damon shook his head, dropping Laura's hands at the same time.

"What about Stefan?" Laura frowned.

"No. Not as long as he is under Klaus's control." Damon continued to shake his head.

"Then we need a better plan." Laura sighed.

"I know what to do. Your just not gonna like it." Damon frowned.

"Why not?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Because when this all goes down; I don't want you having any part of it." Damon told her.

"What does you mean?" Laura asked.

"Do you trust me?" Damon replied.

"Yes." Laura said emphatically, and surprising herself by genuinely meaning it. She knew what Damon's plan was, but she also trusted Damon implicitly, which she couldn't say about anyone she'd met since she arrived.

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Damon assured her.

"There's nobody else around to listen. Tell me." Laura said excitedly.

"I've asked Katherine if she'll pretend to be you for the night." Damon said proudly.

"And she actually agreed to it?" Laura asked.

"Oh yeah. It is a dream come true for Katherine to see Klaus being put down. She wants to see Klaus being killed before her own eyes, so that she knows she is completely free from him." He told her.

"I guess that makes sense." Laura nodded.

"So, you need to make sure nobody knows a thing." Damon told her. "You can change in my room, where Katherine will meet you, except she will be the one wearing your clothes. Then hide out in my closet until everyone has left." He said.

"What about Matt?" she asked.

"What's the quarterback got to do with anything?" Damon frowned.

"He is supposed to be Rebekah's date." Laura told him. "He'll be here soon."

"Tell him she's gone with Stefan." Damon suggested.

"I've got a much better idea." Laura smiled. "He can go with Katherine. Nobody will suspect Matt would ever go with Katherine."

"Do you trust him?" Damon asked.

"With my life." Laura smiled.

"As long as he agrees to it." Damon nodded.

"He will, trust me." Laura grinned, as Damon stood up and picked up Rebekah's body.

"I'll leave it up to you to talk him into it." Damon said as he began to carry Rebekah's body down to the basement.

Laura followed Damon, but just as she got to the bottom of the stairs, her phone rang. The caller ID told her it was Caroline, who Laura knew was about to tell her about the flooded gym.

"Hey, Caroline." Laura answered.

"You are not going to believe what has happened." Caroline stated, her voice sounding extremely stressed.

"Try me." Laura replied.

"The school gym is flooded." Caroline told her.

"Does that mean Homecoming has been cancelled and I can have a nice peaceful night in?" Laura asked, sounding hopeful.

"You wish! No, Tyler is moving the party to his house." Caroline said.

"Does that mean kegs and beer pong for Homecoming? That's...different..." Laura frowned.

"Just say you're still coming?!" Caroline pleaded as Laura heard someone is knocking on the front door.

"I'll see you there." Laura promised. "There's someone at the door." She said, hanging up and opening the front door, where Matt was stood outside, looking smart in his suit.

"Elena..." Matt frowned, clearly surprised to see her.

"Matt... Hey." Laura smiled.

"Hey." Matt looked at her suspiciously.

"Umm - slight problem with your Homecoming date." Laura grimaced.

"What happened?" Matt asked.

"How would you feel about a backup date?" Laura suggested.

"Who?" Matt frowned.

"Me, well sort of." Laura smiled.

"What happened to Rebekah?" Matt asked.

"Come in and I'll explain everything." She said as Matt joined her.

Just as planned, Laura went upstairs, only to find Katherine waiting for her. She handed Katherine her clothes and waited in Damon's closet, while Katherine changed and left to go with Matt to the homecoming dance. Laura had no idea how long the whole thing would take, but she knew to listen out for Katherine coming back for Stefan. It was only after he'd left, would she be able to go downstairs and wait for Damon and the inevitable fallout from the plan which would fortunately go wrong.

An hour and a half later, Laura was sat on the couch in the parlor as Damon walked in absolutely fuming. He threw his leather jacket on the back of a chair and proceeded to pour himself a drink at the wet bar.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked.

"Klaus is still alive!" Damon told her. "Mikael is dead, and the stake is gone. We can't kill Klaus!"

"How?" frowned.

"I fucking missed!" Damon spat. "But I thought that would be okay, because Stefan was there, and he could finish Klaus. But instead he knocked the stake out of my hand and saved Klaus, who killed Mikael." He growled, gulping down some bourbon to try and calm himself down. "Stefan fucking betrayed us!" he shouted, filling his glass up with the bottle which was in his hand.

"How? Why?" Laura shook her head.

"We thought of everything, Elena! Klaus having hybrids. Mikael turning on us. We brought in Katherine, so you weren't in danger. Anything that could have gone wrong we were prepared!" Damon spat, taking another drink.

"I don't get it. Stefan wanted Klaus dead, more than anything. That's what we were counting on." Laura frowned.

"We blew it." Damon cried.

"Where's Katherine?" Laura asked.

"She ran for the hills like usual, the minute things got bad! And who blames her?! Klaus would've crushed her. I had him, Elena. I had Klaus! This could have all been over!" Damon shouted angrily, as he turned and threw the bottle of bourbon into the fireplace. An act which should have scared Laura, yet her trust in Damon was such, that she knew that he would never hurt her.

"Hey. Damon...Hey! Hey, listen to me!" Laura cried as she grabbed Damon's face and pulled it towards her. "We'll survive this. We always survive. Trust me." She said softly, trying to reassure Damon, who she could see was hurt. At that moment she had a sudden urge to kiss him, to make him feel better, but she knew she shouldn't.

Damon frowned. "We're never getting Stefan back. You know that, don't you?" he said, his voice calmer.

"Then we'll let him go. Okay? We'll have to let him go." Laura smiled sadly, stroking Damon's cheeks. He placed his hand upon hers, but just at that moment he phone rang, and Laura knew it was Katherine. Damon let go and answered it.

"Not interested in the play-by-play of our failure right now, Katherine." Damon said, as Laura listened to the one-sided conversation, although she knew what was going on at the other end. "Take care of yourself, Katherine." Damon eventually said, hanging up the phone.

"Is she okay?" Laura asked.

"Yeah. She's back on the run." Damon nodded.

It was at that moment Laura had an idea. With a smile on her face, she took Damon by the hand and led him to the couch, forcing him to sit.

"What's going on?" Damon frowned.

"When Rebekah told me about the history of the Original family, she mentioned nature always finding a balance." Laura explained. "Bonnie has mentioned it herself a few times. Which means nothing can ever be truly immortal." She said.

"Klaus is." Damon sulked.

"In theory, they all are." Laura carried on. "Those daggers don't actually kill them. They just put them to sleep. Nature won't allow that. There always has to be a way. A back-up plan."

"Go on." Damon narrowed his eyes.

"There were four Originals that we know of." Laura told him. "One white oak stake only kills one vampire. That means if there are no other stakes, there is an imbalance of nature. Witches won't let that happen." She said.

"Are you saying there are other stakes out there?" Damon frowned.

"Maybe." Laura nodded. "Or maybe there are other ways to kill, or at least get rid of an Original. We just have to find out how." She smiled, rubbing Damon on the arm to try and reassure him. "And no matter what, we are a team, we'll work it out." She said.

"Do you mean that?" Damon asked. "That we're a team?"

"One way or another." Laura nodded, realizing Damon might have taken what she meant the wrong way, and needing to find a way to put it right. "I guess we have been for quite a while." She said, leaning over and kissing him on the cheek, and taking in his scent. "I really ought to get going." She said standing up.

Damon nodded. "Goodnight and… Thank you Elena." He smiled.

"What for?" Laura frowned.

"For being a good teammate." He nodded.

"Goodnight Damon." Laura smiled and left to go home, her heart fluttering as she recalled the sensation of Damon's skin against her lips, forcing her to grin internally.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**This chapter offers Laura a period of reflection and her first opportunity to change the plot.**

The days following the homecoming dance proved to be very frustrating for Laura. She had no idea of the timescales involved for when things would happen. Any minute, she was expecting Jeremy to take off his ring and run into the middle of the road, before Ric tried to rescue him. However, Laura was determined to make sure that didn't happen.

Ric had begun to be more anti-vampire after Damon had killed him at the Lockwood party, however, he hadn't turned into a full-blown murderous psychopath until he was knocked over by one of Klaus' hybrids. Which meant Laura had to make sure that didn't happen. To prevent the accident from happening, Laura needed concentrated vervain, and lots of it, so that she could slip it into everything she, Ric and Jeremy either ate or drank until she knew Ric was in the clear. The only problem with that was that she was concerned Klaus would come up with an even more dastardly plan. That and she had barely seen Jeremy ever since he'd broken up with Bonnie, and he hadn't eaten a meal at home since.

Over a week had passed, and Laura still hadn't recognized anything from the show. Every time she went to see Damon, he was either drunk, or out, probably up to no good. She knew he was grieving, because no matter how much he pretended not to care about Stefan, it was abundantly clear he loved his little brother dearly. Laura wanted to help, but the one thing she'd learned from watching the show was that vampires didn't deal with heartbreak the same way humans did. Their emotions were far more heightened than a human's, meaning a few tears and a tub of Ben and Jerry's would be of no use whatsoever. Therefore Laura left Damon to his own devices, while she set about plotting her own path.

In the meantime, while all of this was going on, Laura was beginning to think she might not be in a coma after all, and what her dad and Bonnie had told her were true. The only supernatural people she saw were Tyler, Caroline and Bonnie, and that was in a friendship capacity. There was no sign of Klaus or any of the other Originals, and the days were turning into those of a normal teenager. Most of the time she went to school, spent time with her friends, trained with Ric, did her homework and hung out at the Grill, just like a normal teenager would. It was this mundane life, which was never covered in the show, that had started to make her wonder whether she was the real Elena Gilbert after all. There were other things which made her question the truth too.

One afternoon, Bonnie had been to see Laura about some of the information her Grams had left her about Laura. It turned out that her guardians had mirrored her childhood to that of Elena's. the only differences were then names, faces and places. Every event up until the death of Elena's parents matched Laura's. Even the names of her friends were similar. Her best friends at school were Carol and Connie. Her first boyfriend, who she lost her virginity to, was called Mark, with whom she broke up with at a party after he'd started talking about life and kids. She found she could talk about an argument she and Connie got into in fifth grade, only to discover Elena and Bonnie got into exactly the same argument, with the same resolution.

Therefore, in theory, if Laura did nothing, she knew exactly how her life would turn out. In a couple of months, she would turn into a vampire. Then she would leave Stefan for Damon, while being sired to him. Jeremy would die and Laura would break the sire-bond. Eventually she'd end up in the sleeping beauty curse for three or so years, until Bonnie figured out how to break it. Stefan would die and she would marry Damon, become a doctor and they'd have a couple of kids, be extremely happy and then die together.

This idyllic version of the future may have seemed perfect for Elena, and also the younger Laura, those opinions no longer held. Laura had understood what getting older actually meant, and she'd only gotten as far as forty. Her body had begun to ache more, she now had to color her hair to cover the strands of grey. She had to work twice as hard to keep in shape, and she was beginning to look older. Not only that, as a schoolteacher, Laura had raised enough kids to last her a few lifetimes. A number of years ago, she realized she wasn't going to meet anyone who was likely to settle down and have kids with her, and she'd come to accept that situation, and even learn to enjoy it. Over the last few years, she'd become selfish, and had decided she never wanted to share her life with the pitter patter of tiny feet. A dog was plenty enough of a responsibility for her. The other point where life experience meant she was different to Elena was her view on vampirism. After watching the show, she had declared she would have become a vampire in a heartbeat, as long as she didn't hurt anyone and wasn't sired to Damon. The rest she could deal with. The conundrum was that it was a known fact that Elena did not want to become a vampire, therefore, she decided to keep this piece of information to herself, because one of the ways she could save Ric from Esther, was to become a vampire herself before he did, as Esther wouldn't be able to use her blood to change him. However, Laura knew she had to do it before she fell for Damon, because unlike Elena, who was clearly in denial during season three, Laura was under no illusion that her feelings for him were rapidly changing.

A few days later, Laura was out for her morning run, when she first noticed something familiar, something which she could pinpoint to an episode she remembered. The episode where Ric nearly died, and Damon kissed Elena for the first time. Her first clue was when she stopped to check her watch to see what her time was, like she usually did. As she turned around, she saw a man in a hoodie running towards her. Unlike Elena, Laura knew that this was the hybrid Jeremy might end up killing later, that was if she was unable to change what would happen. However, for the time being, she needed to continue as Elena did in the show, therefore, she turned back around and started running again. However, the man continued to follow her, so Laura turned a corner and speds up. After a few minutes, she stopped running and looked behind her, only to find the man had disappeared. She regained her breath and turned to start running again, but instead, she walked straight into the man who had been following her, who she vaguely remembered was called Tony.

"Excuse me. Should have been watching where I was going." Tony apologized.

"Don't worry about it." Laura swallowed.

"Have a nice day." Tony smiled before jogging away as Laura watched on, knowing she was going to have to make a move to save Ric.

Laura had arranged to meet Bonnie at the Grill at lunchtime. It was time she began to spill the beans about the dreams Bonnie had been having. As per Bonnie's request, Laura hadn't mentioned it earlier because Bonnie only wanted to know what was going on when it was essential, and now Laura deemed the time essential. The only problem was she didn't want vampire ears listening in, and she knew Damon would be at the Grill.

They sat down to have a drink at one of the tables.

"So how are things?" Bonnie asked.

"I feel like I'm going crazy. Totally paranoid all the time." Laura sighed.

"You have a right to be. Klaus is still out there, and he knows you tried to kill him." Bonnie said.

"I know what his next move is, the problem has been the waiting game." Laura told her. "I've been going crazy waiting for the first sign that I recognized. And it finally happened today." She said.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked.

"I saw someone in the street. Up until that point there had been no sign of him. Nothing. Just my slow spiral into insanity." Laura complained.

"Join the club. Every time I close my eyes, I have that nightmare. On repeat." Bonnie told her.

"The same dream?" Laura frowned.

"Yeah! Four coffins, Klaus is in one of them. It's weird." Bonnie told her. "Do you know what it means?" she asked.

"It's a... you know...a witch dream?" Laura whispered. "I can tell you all about it, but not here." She said, looking around to see if Damon was listening, however he was stood at the bar with a vast array of alcoholic drinks, talking to Ric and flirting with the woman behind the bar who had been serving him, much to Laura's distaste.

"Don't worry, I'm sure I'll figure it out." Bonnie assured her. "And what about Stefan? Has there been any sign of him?" she asked.

"He betrayed us Bonnie. The Stefan that we know is gone." Laura told her. "But I'm sure he'll be making his presence loud and clear when he is ready."

"How is Damon handling it?" Bonnie asked.

"Damon is...Damon." Laura sighed, looking back at him once again as he made his way over to the dartboard as Ric got up to leave, however, he firstly made his way over to Laura and Bonnie.

"Jeremy was fired last." Ric told Laura. "He's been up to something else while pretending to be here. Maybe you should try and talk to him." He suggested.

"I will." Laura nodded, taking out her phone.

"I've got to go." Bonnie said, clearly not wanting to be near anything related to Jeremy.

"I'll see you later." Laura said as Bonnie nodded and left just behind Ric.

Laura walked over to where Damon was playing darts while calling Jeremy, however, she just got his mailbox.

"Jeremy, the minute that you get this call me!" Laura said angrily, before hanging up. "Unbelievable!" she declared.

"You are feisty when you are mad." Damon teased.

"It's not that I'm mad. I'm just worried." Laura said sadly.

"But why? He lost his job at the Grill. He can survive, Elena." Damon frowned.

"He's spiraling. Ever since Bonnie broke up with him, he's been moody and not really talking to anyone." Laura told him.

"It's typical teenager." Damon shrugged.

"Who's seeing ghosts and has lost everyone he loves." Laura shook her head.

"Not everyone. He still has you." Damon corrected her as he shots a dart and then retrieved it.

"Are you okay?" Laura frowned.

"What makes you think I'm not okay?" Damon grinned.

"Well, you're day-drunk. It's not exactly your most attractive look." Laura said before mentally slapping herself for repeating Elena's line considering she knew what was coming next.

"Hmm- what is my most attractive look?" Damon walked up to her flirtatiously.

"I'm not saying you have any attractive looks. I'm saying being day-drunk is the one I like the least." Laura blushed, trying her hardest to not admit to finding him extremely sexy even if he was day drunk.

"Noted. See if I can make any improvements." Damon promised, offering her his sexiest smile, making Laura blush even further.

"Don't mind me." Came Klaus's voice, interrupting their little moment.

"Klaus." Laura rolled her eyes.

"You gonna do this in the Grill? In front of everyone? It's a little beneath you, don't you think?" Damon sneered.

"I don't know what you are talking about. I just came down to my local pub to grab a drink with a mate." Klaus said innocently as Tony the hybrid jogger who had followed Laura appeared behind Klaus. "Get a round in, would you Tony?" he told him.

"I'm surprised you stuck around town long enough for happy hour." Damon taunted.

"My sister seems to be missing. Need to sort that out." Klaus told him.

"Cute blonde bombshell, psycho. Shouldn't be too hard to find." Damon said sarcastically.

"Truth is I've grown to rather like your little town. Think I might fancy a home here." Klaus said. "Oh, I imagine you're wondering how does this is affect you. The answer is: not in the slightest. As long as I get what I want, and everyone behaves themselves you can go on living your little lives however you choose. You have my word." He promised, although it sounded disingenuous.

"What else could you want?" Laura asked angrily.

"Well for starters, you can tell me where I might find Stefan." Klaus replied.

"Stefan skipped town the second he saved your ass." Damon frowned.

"Well you see that is a shame." Klaus sighed, picking up a dart and throwing it at the dartboard, straight at the bullseye. "Your brother stole from me." He told them. "I need him found so I can take back what's mine."

"That sounds like a Klaus and Stefan problem." Laura said as Klaus moved toward her, however, Damon stepped in between them, bringing a smirk to Klaus's lips.

"Ha. Well this is me broadening the scope, sweetheart." Klaus said walking over to the bar.

"He's up to something." Laura whispered to Damon. "I don't like it."

"Well unless we know what he's up to, there's not a lot we can do about it." Damon shrugged.

"Just promise me you'll be careful and won't provoke him." Laura glared at Damon.

"Why?" Damon frowned. "You worried about me?" he grinned.

"You know I worry about you." Laura sighed, when she suddenly had an idea. "Why don't you come back to mine and have dinner with me and Ric." She suggested.

"And why would I do that?" Damon asked. "I already apologized and he's still mad at me."

"So, I can keep an eye on you, and… I might need your help." She lowered her eyes, as she received a text from Jeremy, confirming he'd be home for dinner.

"With what?" Damon asked.

"Jeremy." Laura told him. "The reason I'm really worried is because I think he might be hanging out with Tyler Lockwood." She admitted. "I've been slipping vervain into our food and drink, but he hasn't eaten at home for a few days. Tyler is one of Klaus's minions, which means he might be able to influence Jeremy." She said.

"And you want me to test whether he has been taking the vervain?" Damon asked.

"If you don't mind." Laura smiled.

"Sure." Damon agreed, throwing one last dart and hitting the bullseye.

Laura's decision to invite Damon hadn't gone down too well with Ric. Some headway had been made in repairing their friendship, but there was still a long way to go before it was back to normal. That was why Damon had taken to watching tv in the living room while Laura and Alaric prepared dinner and set the table.

Alaric: So, you're ready?

"Vampires, hybrids and originals. No problem. My rebellious brother. I'm worried." Laura shook her head.

"Proof that you're still human." Ric smiled, just as the front door opened and Jeremy walked in and headed straight to the fridge.

"Just in time! We're cooking." Laura said cheerfully.

"Sorry, just passing through." Jeremy shook his head.

"Ah, well I thought we would all stay in, have a meal together like a typical, atypical family." Ric suggested.

"Why?" Jeremy asked suspiciously as Damon appeared in the doorway.

"Maybe because you got fired and didn't tell me." Laura folded her arms, as Damon's phone rang.

"I'll just get this." Damon frowned as he went back into the living room and took the call.

"Ahh- look, can we do this later? I made plans with Tyler. He's right outside." Jeremy protested.

"Oh wait! When did you start hanging out with Tyler Lockwood?" Ric asked.

"I don't know...Does it matter?" Jeremy shrugged.

"Yeah, Jeremy! It matters. He was sired by Klaus. He's dangerous." Laura told him angrily.

"He can still hear you. He is right outside. Besides you of all people are gonna lecture me on who I can and can't hang out with?" Jeremy sneered.

"What's with the attitude?" Laura asked, infuriated.

"Yeah, whatever, this is lame. Tyler is waiting." Jeremy shrugged as he turned to leave, however Laura blocked his path.

"Oh, no, no! You are not going anywhere, especially not with Tyler." Laura told him assertively as Jeremy looked to Alaric for help.

"I'm with her on this, Jer. Sorry." Ric shrugged.

"All right, fine. You want me to stay in? Let's all stay in then." Jeremy shouted. "Yo, Tyler! Come on in!" he called out.

"Jeremy...!" Laura cried as Tyler opened the door, walked in and sat down.

Laura turned to the living room to see where Damon was, but he was still on the phone, his face full of concern. Worried her plan was going to fall apart, Laura turned back to the table to see Jeremy handing Tyler a glass of water.

"Thanks." Tyler said.

"So not only has Klaus got hybrids stalking me, you're now sitting in our kitchen." Laura shook her head in disgust.

"Look, maybe I should go." Tyler frowned.

"Oh, stay. You're not doing anything." Jeremy insisted.

"Unless you have to, you know, check in with your hybrid master." Laura said sarcastically.

Tyler laughed. "It's not like that Elena." He told her.

"Tell me Tyler...What is the difference between being sired and being compelled?" Ric asked.

"Compulsion-that's just mind control-like hypnosis. And being sired is...it's like faith. You do something because you believe it's the right thing." Tyler tried to explain.

"So, you believe that serving Klaus is the right thing?" Laura frowned.

"I don't serve him. Klaus released me from a curse that was ruining my life. I owe him for that." Tyler said.

"What if he asked you to jump off a bridge?" Ric asked.

"He wouldn't! And even if he did, I'd be fine. I'm a hybrid." Tyler shrugged.

"Okay, so what if he asked you to rip your own heart out?" Laura suggested.

"Again, he wouldn't." Tyler winced.

"What if he did?" Laura insisted.

"I don't know! Then I'd rip out my heart!" Tyler snapped as Laura, Jeremy, and Alaric look taken aback. Just at that moment Jeremy took his phone out of his pocket and Damon appeared.

"You guys sound like Caroline, getting all freaked out over something you don't understand." Tyler shook his head.

"You're right Tyler I don't understand. Klaus has terrorized every single one of us and you're just blindly loyal to him." Laura argued.

"You're over-thinking it. I can still make my own decisions." Tyler said.

"That's not true." Damon shook his head. "If Klaus tells you to do it, you will do it, whether you want to or not, because you are _sired_ and that is how it works." He said as Jeremy hung up his phone.

"What was that about?" Laura asked, suddenly beginning to worry that her fears were correct, and Jeremy hadn't ingested any vervain in the last few days.

"It was nothing." Jeremy shrugged.

"I got to go. Umm, thanks for the food offer, but..." Tyler stood up.

"Next time." Ric smiled as Tyler left.

"That was illuminating." Ric shrugged.

"So, Tyler Lockwood is a lunatic who has access to our house." Laura sighed before turning to Damon. Who was that on the phone?" she asked.

"It was Klaus." Damon told them.

"What did he want?" Ric frowned.

"You know, making threats…" Damon started as Laura looked around for Jeremy, but he had already left.

"Jeremy?" Laura called out as she noticed his protection ring lying in the middle of his plate on the table.

"That's his ring." Ric cried out as Laura picked it up.

"Where did he go?" Laura cried, noticing the front door was open and Jeremy was stood in the middle of the street.

"Jeremy?" Laura called out to him, but Jeremy didn't flinch. "What is he doing?" she said, before deciding to take matters into her own hands.

Laura ran out in the street to grab Jeremy when she suddenly heard a car come whipping around the corner, speeding towards them.

"Oh my god! Jeremy move!" Laura screamed as she tried to pull him out of the street, but he wouldn't budge.

"Jeremy, Elena!" Ric cried out as he came running towards them.

"Jeremy move!" Laura cried out once more, when she felt a sudden breeze and both she and Jeremy were on the sidewalk courtesy of Damon.

They heard a bang and all three of them turned around to see Alaric being thrown into the air as the car hit him and he fell to the ground. Laura and Damon ran over to Alaric's body and turned him over, just as the car which hit him pulled up next to them, revealing Tony, the hybrid, as the driver.

"There I go again. Bumping into people..." Tony smiled before driving off.

Laura checked Alaric's hand to make sure his ring was on. Just then Jeremy joined Laura and Damon.

"He's gonna be alright." Laura promised. "Are you all right?" she asked Jeremy.

"I don't understand." Jeremy frowned.

"Who was that on the phone earlier?" Laura asked.

"It was Klaus!" Jeremy replied, his eyes opening wide.

"You were compelled, Jeremy!" Laura said sadly as Damon picked Ric up.

"I'll take him inside." Damon said softly as they returned back to the house.

As they walked back, Laura's heart sank. Her first attempt to save Ric had failed. She might still be able to find a way to stop Esther from turning Ric into an Original vampire, however, it wouldn't be enough to stop him from going on his killing spree.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**This is pretty much taken from the show with a few additional touches.**

Damon gently placed Alaric down on the couch in the living room while Laura paced. The accident wasn't exactly the same as the show, so she had hope he might still be alive.

"How is he?" Laura asked Damon.

"He's dead, but he had his ring. He should be okay in a few minutes." Damon assured her.

"I thought he said it took hours for it to work the last time." Laura frowned.

"Well let's hope it's not on the blink." Damon shrugged. "Let's see how long it takes for him to come back this time, if it's more than an hour, I'd talk to Bonnie about it." He suggested.

"I will." Laura nodded.

"Jeremy, why aren't you wearing vervain? Where is your bracelet?" Damon narrowed his eyes, clearly noticing Jeremy's missing bracelet.

"I don't know." Jeremy replied, looking puzzled.

"It was Tyler! It had to have been. That's why he was hanging out with you. To get you off the vervain." Laura shook her head. "But I still don't get it, I've been putting vervain in our food, just in case something happened." She told him.

"I haven't eaten here for a week." Jeremy sighed. "I was eating with Tyler." He added.

"Klaus is trying to send us a message. He wants us to find Stefan who stole his coffins full of his dead family members." Damon told Laura. "That's why he's been quiet and getting Tyler to make sure Jeremy wasn't on vervain."

"Coffins?" Laura frowned.

"Yep! So, all we have to do is find four coffins and voilà! No one else on your family's Christmas list needs to die!" Damon nodded.

"Wait- that's your big plan? To steal back four dead originals so this evil hybrid doesn't kill me and everyone else we know?" Jeremy cried.

"You got a better idea?" Damon asked.

"Yeah! Let's get the hell outta here! Pack our bags and go!" Jeremy said angrily.

"Hey, Jer calm down." Laura said in a soothing voice, hoping to calm Jeremy down.

"No, no! I'm not gonna calm down, Elena! This happens every time, no matter what we do! Get on my case about school and work...Who cares? None of us are gonna make it out of this town alive." Jeremy shouted before leaving.

Laura shook her head before turning back to look at Damon. "He said he wants his family back... well…" she started.

"No! No! I know what you're thinking. The answer is no!" Damon shook his head emphatically.

"But we can give him Rebekah..." Laura pleaded.

"Yeah, then Klaus undaggers her, first thing she does is kill you! Frying pan, fire. Not an option!" Damon refused.

"But…" Laura started.

"I said no!" Damon insisted. "We need to find the coffins instead."

"Okay." Laura nodded. "How many did you say they were?" she asked, already tired of the coffin situation. She knew where they were, what they contained and what she didn't want releasing. It was then she had another idea. She was going to need Bonnie's help, but for now she would have to play along with the show story.

"Four." Damon frowned. "Why?"

Laura pulled out her phone. "Bonnie has been having strange dreams about coffins and Klaus." She told him. "She thought it was stress, but it sounds more like a witch dream. I'll call her." She added, as Damon simply nodded while she dialed Bonnie's number.

"Elena, hey!" Bonnie answered. They'd agreed she would always refer to Laura as Elena over the phone unless Laura said there was nobody who could hear the conversation.

"Klaus is looking for four coffins, just like in your dream. Guessing it's not just stress?" Laura told her.

"Elena don't get involved. Whatever Klaus wants, stay as far away from it as you can!" Bonnie warned.

"Klaus won't let me. Bonnie, he tried to kill Jeremy." Laura pleaded.

"What do you want me to do?" Bonnie sighed.

"We need to find Stefan. Look, I know that you don't think that your locator spell still works, but we have to at least try." Laura said.

"You don't need a locator spell..." Bonnie told her. "Stefan's at the old witch house."

"Thank you, Bonnie." Laura grinned. "I'll speak to you later." She said hanging up and turning to Damon. "Are you driving; or shall I?" she asked.

"I'll drive." Damon grinned as they left Ric alone on the couch, while they made their way to the witches' house to find the coffins.

The drive to the old witches' house took about twenty minutes in Damon's car. Laura had to make mental notes, so that she would be able to find her way back later, because she knew Damon would stay with Stefan, while she was giving Rebekah back to Klaus. Once they'd left the car, they had a ten-minute hike to the house, as the surrounding area wasn't suitable to take Damon's precious car.

"I thought Bonnie said this place lost all its mojo." Damon frowned as they walked up the slope towards the house.

"The dead witches were angry at Bonnie for bringing Jeremy back to life, but now I guess need her." Laura shrugged.

"I hate witches. So fickle...Passive-aggressive..." Damon complained as they entered the house.

"Stefan?" Laura said.

"Come on, Stef. Olly Olly oxen free." Damon called out to Stefan, however, as soon as he walked into the light, his skin began to burn. "Aaah. Ow. Ugh." He cried, before rushing to a shadowy corner. "Really?! Still?!" he called out into thin air.

"What?" Laura frowned.

"Witchy spirits aren't a big fan. And they use their juju to screw with my daylight ring!" Damon shouted into thin air.

"Then wait outside." Laura suggested.

"Elena...!" Damon warned.

"I'm not leaving until I know if he's here or not." Laura said adamantly, walking further into the house, while Damon vamp-sped out.

"Stefan?" Laura called out again, walking downstairs to the basement.

"Go away! You shouldn't be here Elena." Stefan said from out of the shadows.

"Stefan, I need your help. Bonnie said that you would be here." Laura told him.

"Well, Bonnie sucks at keeping secrets." Stefan said sarcastically.

"Look Stefan, we need you to give Klaus his family back." Laura begged.

"Oh, really? Is that what _I_ need to do?" Stefan raised an eyebrow.

"Klaus compelled Jeremy to stand in front of speeding car." Laura told him. "Don't you get it? Stefan, he's prepared to hurt or kill people we love, and he's not gonna stop until he gets what he wants."

"Elena, stop talking. I'm not giving Klaus anything." Stefan said flatly.

"Are you listening to me? He's gonna kill Jeremy!" Laura pleaded.

"Not really my problem." Stefan shrugged.

Anger welled up inside her, and instinct took over. The last few weeks of sheer disappointment in the character she loved had become too much, plus she was beginning to care about Jeremy and the thought of Stefan not caring enraged her, therefore, she slapped him across the face as hard as she could, making the palm of her hand smart.

"And you can go to hell!" Laura spat as she stormed out of the house.

"That didn't go over well." Damon remarked.

"Don't even start, Damon!" Laura warned.

"Let me talk to him!" Damon said softly.

"You can't get in! The witches will burn you!" Laura shook her head.

"Here. Take my car keys. You go deal with your brother; I'll deal with mine." Damon said, handing her the keys to his car, before taking a deep breath and rushing into the house.

Laura made her way back to the car and drove home. It was getting late, so by the time she had gotten there, it was already dark. Just as she got in, she noticed Ric trying to sit up on the couch.

"Ric, hey! When did you return to the living?" Laura said brightly.

"Oh just a few minutes ago. How is Jeremy?" Ric replied.

"Hating me. Hating life. Hating the fact that we can't even have a family dinner without somebody dying before dessert. Are you okay?" Laura asked as Ric suddenly coughed violently, bringing up blood.

"Oh my god!" Laura cried.

"Something's wrong! The ring!" Ric said weakly before collapsing to the floor.

"Ric, hey." Laura shook him to make sure he was still alive. She pulled out her phone and dialed 911.

Five minutes later Laura was opening the front door, letting the paramedics in.

"What happened?" one of them said.

"He got hit by a car and... he's coughing up blood." Laura told them.

The other paramedic hovered over Ric. "Get his vitals." He said.

"Pulse pretty weak. Looks like internal bleeding. We gotta get him outta here." The first one replied.

"Let's move!" The other paramedic said as they put him on a stretcher and began to wheel him out of the house, until they were stopped in the doorway by Tony, Klaus's hybrid, who had been following Laura that morning.

"Let's not and say we did. Why don't you two meet us at the hospital?" Tony smiled at the paramedics.

"What?" Laura looked on in confusion at Tony and then the paramedics as they started to leave.

"No, no, no, wait. No wait! You have to help him! Where are you going?" Laura pleaded the paramedics who had left.

"You can still save his life, Elena. Here, take my blood." Tony offered his wrist. "I can't get in. You're gonna have to invite me." He smirked.

"No. Why are you doing this?" Laura scowled.

"Klaus asked for his family. You didn't deliver." Tony told her as Ric started coughing again.

"Ric! Oh my god! Are you okay? I'm right here." Laura cried as she rushed over and knelt down beside him.

"He's gonna die. Might want to invite me in, Elena." Tony taunted her, when suddenly he fell to the ground, as he had been hit in the back with an arrow. Laura ran over to the door and saw Jeremy standing behind Tony with a crossbow in his hands.

"Jeremy!" Laura yelled.

"He's not dead yet." Jeremy said calmly as he walked into the house and straight past Laura.

"Where are you going?" Laura asked as he took the meat cleaver and went back out of the house again and stood over Tony.

"What are you doing?" Laura asked again, although she knew exactly what was coming. She was about to turn to look away, but it was too late as she watched Jeremy cut Tony's head off.

"Aahhh!" Laura screamed.

"Now he's dead." Jeremy flatly, standing up. "We've gotta get Alaric to the hospital now." He told Laura, as he dropped the knife and goes back in the house. Laura stood there initially in shock before realizing that she was going to need to get everything cleaned up, which was why she called Damon to clear up the mess and sort Ric out while she would give Rebekah back to Klaus.

Laura was waiting for Klaus at the Salvatore boarding house, when she heard a knock on the door. As expected, when she answered it, Klaus was stood outside.

"Thank you for coming." Laura smiled as Klaus walked in.

"I trust you have news of Stefan?" Klaus said.

"I couldn't find him." Laura lied. "But I have something else." She said as she led Klaus down to the basement where Rebekah's body was being kept. Laura opened the door to one of the cell's; revealing to Klaus, Rebekah's body, lying on the ground, daggered.

"My poor sister." Klaus said dramatically. "I can't turn my back on her for a moment." He sighed.

"You have Rebekah. You promised." Laura raised an eyebrow, knowing Klaus could be trusted on matters such as family.

"The life of my sister in exchange for your brother? Yeah, I'd say that's a bargain. Consider him spared." Klaus agreed.

"You should know I was the one that daggered her. When she wakes, she'll come after me." Laura warned him.

"I can control Rebekah. Besides I still need your help finding Stefan." Klaus grinned.

"I told you I don't know where he is." Laura lied as Klaus undaggered Rebekah.

"You're lying. Fortunately, you have no shortage of loved ones. If I don't find my family the question you should be asking yourself is who's gonna die next! Bonnie? Caroline? Damon? It's only a matter of time before Stefan gives me what I want." Klaus warned her.

"He doesn't care about me anymore. You made sure of that. You turned him into a monster. Now he's your problem. And just so you know I'm not the only one that Rebekah wants dead. She knows what you did to your mother. She knows that you killed her. You can let yourself out." Laura told him before leaving to go and clean up the mess Jeremy had caused.

Once Laura got home, she found the bleach and some cloths, before starting to clean the blood up off the porch. A few times she was nearly sick, so to keep herself sane, she reminded herself of the show True Blood, and how many times Sookie ended up cleaning blood up from her house. Just after she had wandered back into the kitchen to rinse out the blood-soaked rag, Damon joined her.

"Did you get rid of him?" Laura asked, stopping what she was doing.

"Yeah. Tony the headless hybrid is down at the bottom of Steven's Quarry." Damon told her proudly.

"What about Alaric?" Laura asked.

"Took care of him, too. He'll be fine. How are you?" Damon frowned.

"I think I got most of the blood off the porch." Laura nodded, swallowing hard, struggling to deal with everything that had happened.

"Elena. Look at me. It's gonna be okay." Damon insisted.

Laura took in a deep breath; it was time to admit to the deal she'd made with Klaus. "I have to tell you something. I gave Rebekah back to Klaus in exchange for Jeremy's life." She told him.

"What? No. No, no, no you did not do that. She's gonna come here and try and kill you!" Damon groaned.

"No, she won't. Klaus won't let her because he needs me." Laura explained.

"And suddenly you trust him?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"No, I don't trust him. But what choice do I have?" Laura asked. "I don't trust Stefan. Do you really think he's just gonna give up the coffins?"

"My brother is- sort of running his own show right now." Damon frowned.

"Yeah, exactly! And my brother just chopped off someone's head!" Laura exclaimed. "It's not right. It's not fair. He's sixteen years old. He shouldn't have to live like this." She said, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Elena." Damon looked at her with sadness in his eyes.

"There has to be another way." Laura shook her head, still fighting back the tears. "We need to do something Damon." She said turning back to the sink and began to rinse out the cloth.

Damon walked over to her and grabbed her face in his hands.

"We will! Hey...Elena. Hey. We will. Okay?" Damon promised.

"How?" Laura asked. "I need to protect Jeremy from all of this. He's too young, he shouldn't be involved in this mess." She said, unable to hold the tears back any longer.

"What can I do?" Damon asked.

Laura had never agreed to Elena having Damon compel him to go to Denver, but now she was in her shoes, she fully understood.

"We've got some family friends in Denver." Laura told him. "They offered to look after us after our parents died. I could ask them to take care of Jeremy for a while, tell them I'm struggling to cope." She continued. "But I don't think Jeremy would go willingly. This is where I need your help." She said.

"I'll finish cleaning the porch, while you speak to your friends in Denver. Then we'll go and talk to Jeremy." Damon said as Ric and Jeremy arrived home. Jeremy went straight to his room while Laura started to put her plan into motion.

Half an hour later, Laura had explained to Ric about their plans for Jeremy, to which he emphatically agreed to. She'd contacted the family friends in Denver, who agreed to take Jeremy in for a while, which left only the task of convincing Jeremy to go.

Alaric and Laura go up to Jeremy's room, while Damon followed, staying back, so not to alert Jeremy as to what they were up to. The door was already open, so Laura knocked on the doorframe.

"Jer, can we talk?" Laura asked.

"Ahh, what did I do now?" Jeremy sighed.

"It's okay, you've not done anything wrong." Laura smiled. "It's just that I thought about what you said earlier, you know, about how we should pack up and go..." she started.

"Elena, I didn't mean any of that." Jeremy shook his head.

"But you were right. You shouldn't have to give up a normal life- just because of me." Laura smiled sadly.

"What's going on?" Jeremy frowned as Damon walked into the room.

"Your sister thinks we should have another one of our talks." Damon told him as Jeremy rolled his eyes, knowing what was coming next, however, he didn't protest when Damon sat down on the bed next to Jeremy and started to compel him.

"Here's the thing, Jer. You're gonna go out of town for a while- a long while. You're gonna stay with some nice family friends in Denver, you're gonna be at a new school, you'll meet new girls, living girls. You're going to drink a few beers, take an art class. You do whatever you want." Damon smiled.

"Tell him he's gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it." Ric chimed in.

Damon looked at Laura; who nodded in agreement.

"You're gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it. You're gonna have a better life, Jeremy." Damon said as Laura started crying.

Laura rushed out of Jeremy's room, ran downstairs and stood outside on the front porch, needing some air. A moment later Damon joined her.

"I feel like a horrible person." Laura complained.

"You just saved his life, Elena. Take it from me, strange is bad, dead is worse." Damon smiled.

"I just can't stop thinking about what happened the last time I asked you to compel him." Laura said.

"He found out. And he got over it. Again: not dead, Elena! He's so lucky to have you for his sister." Damon assured her.

"Thank you." Laura smiled.

"No problem." Damon shrugged.

"Not just for this, Damon. For everything...I don't know what I would do without you." Laura sighed.

Damon paused for a moment before coming clean about Stefan. "You should know this, Elena. Stefan didn't screw us over. He screwed us over, but he had a good reason." Damon rolled his eyes.

"What?" Laura frowned.

"He saved Klaus to save me. Then he stole the coffins to get even." Damon told her.

"What? Damon, if he did it to protect you then...Why would he even do that? What is it even mean?" Laura asked.

"What's it even mean? Means I'm an idiot. Cause I thought for one second that I wouldn't have to feel guilty anymore." Damon turned to face her.

"What? What are you talking about? Guilty for what?" Laura frowned.

"For wanting what I want." Damon said quietly.

"Damon..." Laura said, knowing exactly what Damon meant, and what was about to happen. It was the moment she had initially dreaded, however, over the past few days, she'd almost looked forward to it, even though she'd wondered whether it would happen with her now failed first attempt to save Ric.

"I know. Believe me, I get it...Brother's girl and all." Damon sighed as he started to leave before stopping halfway down the steps.

"No! No, you know what? If I'm gonna feel guilty about something, I'm gonna feel guilty about this." Damon said as he walked straight up to her, took face in his hands and began to kiss her.

Laura wasn't an eighteen-year-old girl, and even if she had lived a fake life, she was still a forty-year-old woman with an extra twenty-two years' worth of sexual experience. This meant the reaction on the show from that version of Elena, in contrast with Laura was light and day. No matter how much experience she'd had, nothing could have prepared her for Damon's kiss, even the knowledge of it being about to happen wasn't enough.

Instead of letting Damon simply kiss her, Laura's sex-starved body instinctively reacted to him. No matter what her feelings for him were a month ago, they was now long forgotten. She wanted Damon almost as much as he wanted her, and she was going to make sure he knew that. Laura placed her hand on Damon's cheek, to let him know she was reciprocating the kiss. She pulled him closer in until Damon must have finally realized she also wanted this.

Laura parted her lips to allow the kiss to deepen, which although Damon did, he was tender and didn't probe too far. Their tongues barely touched, but it was enough to set her body on fire and make her desperate for more. However, Damon was the one who broke away from the kiss. It was then she realized he was only giving her a taste of what was possible, which was a fire, already burning so hot inside her, it was beginning to consume her, just like it had consumed Elena.

"Good night." Damon smiled as he walked away, leaving Laura stood on the porch, hot, bothered, speechless, and desperate for more.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**A lot more changes in this chapter than the previous ones. I hope you enjoy it.**

Laura could barely sleep a wink. In theory, she should have been worrying about Jeremy and Ric, especially as her planned had failed in such an epic fashion. However, neither of these were what was keeping her from sleeping. The kiss she'd shared with Damon might not have been the extremely passionate kiss which Damon and Laura shared at the motel, but it was the most beautiful kiss she'd ever experienced. Words couldn't describe how he made her feel emotionally, however, physically, Laura was now incredibly horny.

Under normal circumstances, Laura would have masturbated to relieve her sexual tension, however, for some reason, being in a different body, made her feel uncomfortable. Although she'd had almost a month to get used to Laura's body, it still didn't feel quite like her own, despite the assurances of her dad and Bonnie. Deep down, Laura was still completely on board with the notion that she came from an alternate plane and this was real life, vs her being in a coma and dreaming she was on a tv show. This uncertainty left Laura feeling very sexually frustrated, which was one reason why she couldn't sleep.

The other reason she was struggling to sleep, was her growing feelings for Damon. This was completely foreign to her. But unlike Laura, Laura was adult enough to be able to separate her feelings for Stefan and recognizing that she was falling for Damon. This was a huge concern, as at some point, the likelihood of becoming a vampire was extremely high. Laura wasn't too worried about that itself, however, what she was worried about was becoming a vampire while being in love with Damon, as she knew it would result in her being sired to him, and Laura was terrified of that prospect.

Despite having hardly any sleep, Laura managed to make it to Ric's apartment the next morning for training. In some ways, she was glad, as she desperately needed to burn off some of her sexual frustration, which she was currently taking out on a punchbag, with such force, she had clearly taken Ric by surprise.

"Hey, you're gonna put a hole in that thing! You want to talk about it?" Ric asked.

"Nothing to talk about." Laura continued as Ric held the punchbag for her.

"So, what's got you all worked up?" Ric frowned suspiciously.

"I didn't really sleep last night." Laura told him.

"Yeah, me neither. Probably something to do with dying..." Ric shrugged.

"Are you okay?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine. I think the ring, however, is running low on batteries." Ric said, narrowing his eyes.

"Yeah, that's another reason why Jeremy has to get out of town. If those rings have a shelf life, he is not protected, neither are you." Laura said as she punched the bag one last time with all of her strength. "I'm going to talk to Bonnie about it later, see if she can find out what to do about it. She might have to make a new ring. I think the original spell is in Emily's grimoire." She suggested, knowing full well it wouldn't make the slightest difference as Ric would have already developed his alter ego. Laura needed that dealing with instead.

"Thanks." Ric nodded. "Nice, nice, you're getting stronger." He smiled.

"I'm just channeling frustration. I need coffee." Laura sighed walking over to the kitchen counter, before taking off her gloves and making herself some coffee.

"Seems Damon's compulsion worked, Jeremy was packing when I left the house, going on about his new school in Denver." Ric said.

"Have you talked to Damon today?" Laura asked slowly and as casually as possible.

"No. Why?" Ric raised an eyebrow.

"No reason." Laura said innocently as she drank her coffee.

As it was Caroline's birthday, Laura had arranged with Bonnie, to be at school a little earlier to decorate Caroline's locker. However, her training had made her a little late, although it appeared Bonnie was yet to arrive. Instead, Laura got stuck in one her own.

"Hey, sorry I'm late, I... I got held up." Bonnie said breathlessly as she appeared.

"It's okay. I just got here too." Laura smiled. "Can you pass me the balloons?" she asked as Bonnie handed some balloons over to Laura to stick to Caroline's locker door. "Thanks. What got you running late?" she asked.

"I was...working on some new spells." Bonnie told her. "You?"

"Working out with Alaric. So, I have something I need to tell you, and you're not gonna like it." Laura sighed, standing up.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked.

"Do you trust that I know what I'm doing, even if it goes against your very nature?" Laura asked.

Bonnie frowned. "I guess so. Is it really that bad?"

Laura nodded her head. "But I'm fine if your mad at me, because you're mad at Elena in the show." She said as Bonnie folded her arms in anticipation. "So, as you know, I was putting vervain in everything to try to make sure Jeremy couldn't be compelled." She started.

"Yeah." Bonnie said slowly.

"Well, it didn't work. He didn't eat or drink anything at home. And Ric was killed." Laura told her.

"Oh no." Bonnie frowned.

"Yeah, so I need to resort to plan b." Laura said.

"Is this the part I'm not going to like?" Bonnie asked.

Laura nodded. "Apparently there's some spell which can help Ric, some herbs." She explained. "If we can get them to him quickly enough, then hopefully he won't get too far with his killing spree."

"What do you mean too far?" Bonnie raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know if we have time to prevent him from killing the guy who used to date Dr Fell." Laura said sadly. "I think that's going to happen in the next few days."

"Shit!" Bonnie sighed. "Why can't we do it before tonight?" she asked.

"Because we need herbs and that spell." Laura explained. "We got the herbs from your mom. She might even have been the one to tell you about the spell." She said. "But those herbs don't work, so we need to find another way. In the show, you didn't know what the problem was, but now we do, which means there might be another way to deal with it." she said. "I don't think herbs are the answer."

"What is really wrong with the ring?" Bonnie asked.

"Every time Ric died; Klaus's mom has been whispering things into his ears while he was on the other side, to make him hate vampires even more. Eventually he will have an alter-ego, which has been triggered by dying yesterday." Laura told her. "He's gradually been becoming more anti-vampire lately. He's going to start killing council members."

"So, what do we do?" Bonnie frowned.

"Can you tell Ric and Damon that you think another witch has been interfering with the ring and possibly corrupting him?" Laura asked.

"I think I can manage that." Bonnie smiled. "Is that what you were worried about telling me?"

Laura shook her head. "Jeremy is gonna be leaving town for a while. He's staying with some old family friends in Denver, until this whole Klaus and Alaric thing blows over." She told her.

"Jeremy wouldn't just leave you to deal with Klaus on your own." Bonnie frowned. "And he obviously doesn't know about Alaric, so how did you convince him?"

"I asked Damon to compel him." Laura winced.

"You what?" Bonnie's eyes widened with shock.

"I know, Bonnie. But it's not safe for him here is exactly what Elena did, and it is only for a few weeks. Leaving will give him a better life for the time being. The only reason I'm telling you is because I know that you two haven't really worked out your stuff. And I thought that maybe you'd wanna say goodbye." Laura said sheepishly.

"Does it keep him safe?" Bonnie asked.

"Yes and no." Laura sighed. "Nothing happens to him, except being traumatized by the sight of Damon and Elena making out." She frowned. "Are you still mad at me?" she asked slowly.

"Yes." Bonnie nodded. "But I guess it one thing that doesn't need changing if we have got to focus our attention on Alaric." She shrugged as the bell rang. "Where's Caroline?" she asked.

"Caroline went home." Laura told her. "She couldn't face her non-birthday." She said.

"So, you've done this for nothing?" Bonnie asked as they set off for class.

"No." Laura shook her head. "I needed to get you here early to go through my plan. However, for Caroline, we need to get Matt, as we're still going to give Caroline a non-birthday surprise." She grinned.

The surprise was to wait for Caroline at her house. Laura had asked sheriff Forbes to let them in so that they could surprise Caroline with a cake. Laura knew Caroline was feeling down about the whole thing, but she had decided that she was going to go ahead with this part of the plot, after all, she was a bit of a Klaroline shipper, and this was where Klaus and Caroline's friendship started, plus having Caroline being able to manipulate Klaus in the future, might come in extremely handy, just in case the future completely changed and Laura was stuck here.

"Happy birthday!" Matt, Laura and Bonnie cried out in unison when they saw Caroline walk through the front door.

"What are you guys doing here?" Caroline asked.

"Well you blew off school and missed our work of birthday locker art, so we decided to bring the party to you." Laura grinned as she took off the crown she was wearing and put it on Caroline's head.

"Change into warmer clothes, we are going to the Falls. S'mores, campfire..." Bonnie told Caroline.

"Cake! Just like when we were little." Laura added.

"Except for the tequila!" Matt smirked.

"Thanks, guys. Really, um, I'm just not feeling my birthday this year." Caroline shrugged.

"I'm sorry, what? You've already claimed your birthday as everyone's favorite day of the year." Bonnie asked, completely shocked by Caroline's response.

"Yeah, and now, it's just a reminder that technically, I'm dead. Look, I didn't even like 17. And the only point to being 17 is to get to 18. It's a filler year; I'm stuck in a filler year." Caroline said sadly.

"You're not stuck, Caroline." Laura argued.

"Yeah, I am, but it's okay. You know, it's all good, I'll be fine. But I just need some time to wallow in it." Caroline sighed.

"Okay, well I think I have another idea." Laura smiled. "But you still need to dress warm." She said.

Laura had already told Bonnie that they were going to one of the founding family crypts for the party, although she couldn't remember which one it was, although it didn't look like the3 Salvatore crypt. They walked through Mystic Falls cemetery and found one other which they were able to get into, which was the Fell crypt, which Laura instantly recognized to be the one from the show.

"Her we are!" Laura grinned.

"This is creepy, even for us." Bonnie shuddered.

"No, Caroline was right...technically, she's dead." Laura said, turning to Caroline. "Sorry." She apologized. "But you don't need a birthday, you need a funeral. You need to say goodbye to your old life, so that you can move on with your new one." She smiled.

Caroline thought about it for a moment, then a smile emerged on her face, telling Laura that she'd got it right.

"Okay. Here lies Caroline Forbes..." Caroline started as Laura started putting candles on top of a birthday cake.

"Cheerleader, Miss Mystic Falls, third grade hopscotch champion..." Laura added.

"Friend, daughter, overachiever..." Bonnie continued.

"Mean girl, sometimes, no offense." Matt smirked.

"Ah, none taken." Caroline laughed.

"She was 17, and she had a really good life. So, rest in peace, so that she can move forward." Laura said softly, as she walked up to Caroline, and held the cake in front of her. "That's what you really need. What we all really need. Amen, or cheers or whatever. Bonnie?" she turned to Bonnie.

"Oh yeah." Bonnie nodded before using her magic to light the candles.

"Nice! Okay, make a wish." Laura said to Caroline, who closed her eyes and made a wish.

They cut the cake and started eating it, while taking turns with the bottle of tequila. Matt leaned over to take the bottle of tequila from Bonnie, but Laura snatched it from his hand and took a long drink.

"Ah-ah. I need it more than you do, trust me. Caroline, what are you doing?" Laura frowned as she noticed Caroline not participating, but instead she was texting someone on her phone.

"What? Nothing." Caroline replied innocently as she quickly stopped texting, and held her hands down in front of her, trying to hide the phone.

"Okay, you're a bad sober liar. You're an even worse drunk liar." Laura laughed.

"I might have texted Tyler." Caroline admitted.

"Caroline..." Laura sighed.

"What? I'm delicate." Caroline complained.

"Give her a break! You can't control what everyone does all the time." Bonnie said to Laura, prompting an awkward silence.

"Wow." Laura said, sounding shocked, even though she knew Bonnie didn't mean it as Bonnie was in on the act.

"Ouch, Bon." Matt grimaced.

"Sorry, I know its Caroline birthday, funeral or whatever but, I just feel it's really wrong that you compelled Jeremy to leave town." Bonnie said through gritted teeth.

"I'm doing it to protect him, Bonnie. I want to give him a chance to have a quiet normal life, it's too dangerous here right now, he'd never have willingly." Laura protested.

"He should be able to choose how he wants to live it; you're taking his choices away." Bonnie argued back.

"Bonnie, you can't tell him." Laura pleaded.

"Why? Are you gonna compel me not to?" Bonnie raised an eyebrow.

"You know, you guys are ruining a perfect funeral." Matt interjected.

"I'm sorry. I'm just gonna go sleep it off or something. Happy birthday." Bonnie shook her head before getting up and leaving.

The crypt went quiet for a moment after Bonnie left, nobody knew exactly what to say at first, however, Matt, who was intent on making this a fun celebration decided to start the party again.

"She'll be fine." He said. "She's just had too much to drink. I on the other hand…" he started, as he grabbed the bottle of tequila from Laura. "Have not had enough." He laughed, which seemed to lighten the mood a little, however that quickly changed as Tyler suddenly walked through the door.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to crash the party." Tyler apologized.

"So, don't." Matt said coldly, all of his humor disappearing in an instant.

"No, it's-it's okay." Caroline turned to Tyler. "Hi." She said coyly.

"Can I talk to you for a sec? It's kind of important." Tyler asked, as Caroline nodded and left the crypt with him.

Laura turned to Matt. "Are you okay?" she asked as he took a swig from the bottle of tequila.

"Yeah, I want her to be happy, you know? It's what I want for all of you guys, in the middle of this crazy life you got stuck living." Matt sighed.

"Is that how you see it? That we're stuck?" Laura frowned.

"I'd say it's attached itself to you all pretty tight, yeah." Matt nodded, as they sat quietly for a couple of minutes.

Laura broke the silence. "Bonnie is right, you know, I shouldn't be messing around with Jeremy's head. I just don't know what else to do. He is in danger here. I can't lose anyone else that I love." she said sadly, before taking the bottle from Matt and drinking the last bit.

"We're out of alcohol." Matt frowned.

"And Caroline is still MIA with Tyler." Laura said. "Maybe we should go look for her." She suggested.

"Good idea." Matt agreed as they left the crypt to go look for Caroline.

They wandered around the dark woods, for what seemed like hours, although it was probably only minutes, looking for Caroline in the woods. The only thing breaking the darkness was Matt shining a flashlight around.

"Caroline!" Matt called out.

"Great, we've been abandoned. Okay, we're going on a search party, I don't trust that she won't get back together with him." Laura sighed.

"Caroline!" Matt shouted.

"Come on, Caroline we don't have any more drinks! Matt's being haunted by the Fell ghosts." Laura laughed as she playfully nudged Matt with her shoulder.

Matt nudged her back and they both laughed; however, their laughter was cut short when suddenly, someone knocked Matt against the crypt wall at super speed, causing him to fall to the ground unconscious.

"Ma…" Laura started, but a hand over her mouth muffled her cries, before she was whipped away by someone who she already knew to be Stefan.

Moments later, Stefan had taken Laura's phone and bundled her into his car before setting off at speed.

"What are you doing, Stefan?" Laura yelled as her phone rang.

Stefan answered it. "Hello Damon, she's a little busy right now." He said.

"Why the hell do you have Elena's phone?" Damon asked.

"I'm making my next move. Let me ask you something...What will Klaus do if he can't make any more hybrids?" Stefan replied.

"What?" Laura yelled.

"Stefan, leave her out of this." Damon warned him as Stefan rolled down the window and threw her phone out of it, onto the road below.

"What are you doing? Stefan, let me out of this car. Do you hear me? Let me out of the car!" Laura screamed, but Stefan simply ignored her. "So, what's your plan now, Stefan? What's the big move you're making?" she asked, knowing full well what he was doing, which even though she was aware he wouldn't carry out the threat, he was absolutely terrifying her.

"I took Klaus's family to make him suffer. I'm not gonna let him make himself a new one." Stefan told her.

"So, what are you gonna do, huh? Are you gonna lock me in some away and hide me forever?" Laura asked.

"Maybe. Maybe, I'll just turn you into a vampire." Stefan smirked.

Although Laura didn't have a problem with turning into a vampire, she knew Elena did, which meant she had to either make him go through with it or act like Elena did. These thoughts rushed through her brain in a micro-second as fear of dying took over.

"Stop the car, Stefan!" she shouted. "Stop the car, Stefan!"

Again, Stefan ignored her. Instead he got his own phone out, called Klaus and put the call on speakerphone.

"Stefan, how nice to hear your voice." Klaus replied.

"Tell your hybrids to get out of town, Klaus." Stefan threatened him.

"Well that's not gonna happen until I get my coffins back." Klaus told him.

"Okay, well then, I'm gonna drive your blood source off Wickery Bridge." Stefan grinned manically.

"I don't believe you Stefan. You won't kill her." Klaus said, as Stefan bit his wrist and pushed it into Laura's mouth, forcing her to drink his blood.

"No! No! No!" Laura: spluttered at the coppery taste which filled her mouth. "What are you doing?"

"What's going on?" Klaus asked, his voice suddenly sounding concerned.

"I just fed her my blood. No more hybrids if she's a vampire." Stefan laughed.

"You won't do it." Klaus said, his voice going flat.

"Really? Try me, because your coffins are next to go. Say goodbye to your family Klaus." Stefan threatened.

Laura screamed. "Stefan, slow down! Stefan! Stefan, stop it!"

"Fine, I'll send them away. You win." Klaus agreed.

"Stefan! Stefan, stop!" Laura cried out desperately.

"Stop the car, Stefan!" Klaus yelled.

Stefan slammed on the brakes and the car skidded to a stop. Klaus must have heard as he hung up. Furiously, Laura quickly got out of the car and began to run away from Stefan as fast as she could.

"Get back in the car." Stefan shouted.

"Stay away from me." Laura screamed at him with disgust.

"Elena, get in the car." Stefan insisted.

"How could you?!" Laura cried, tears streaming down her face. "My parents died going over this bridge. I almost died. You knew that. You're the one who saved me."

"Look, he had to believe that I would do it, all right? Your fear sold it." Stefan told her, his voice softening a little.

"What if he hadn't?" Laura snapped.

"He did." Stefan replied.

"Well, what if he hadn't?" Laura shouted louder.

"He did Elena!" Stefan yelled back. "He backed down! He has a weakness. If I know his weakness, I can destroy him."

"After everything we've been though, that's what mattered the most? Destroying Klaus?" Laura asked in disgust.

"Destroying Klaus is all I've left." Stefan said pitifully, almost making Laura feel sorry for him.

"You had me!" Laura insisted, her voice hoarse from screaming and crying.

"I lost you the minute I left town with him. You just haven't let yourself admit that yet." Stefan said flatly, although Laura knew it was true.

"What are you doing? Trying to make me hate you?" Laura asked.

"I don't really care what you think about me anymore, Elena." Stefan shrugged as he turned and got back in his car before driving off, leaving Laura all alone on the bridge, scared and crying.

There was a phone booth close to where Stefan left Laura, so she called Damon, who promptly took her home. Even though she hadn't gone through what Elena had gone through, and she knew that Stefan wouldn't have actually gone ahead with his threat, Laura was not only pissed off with Stefan, she was hurt by his treatment. Although, by now she wasn't surprised by the way he had treat her. What was never noticeable on screen, when watching the show, was how cold Stefan was to her. In the flesh, he was completely emotionless, and it was terrifying. Damon on the other hand, was warm and caring. This was why both Elena and Laura had relied on Damon.

On the way back, Laura had barely spoken to Damon. She was deep in thought about what her next move was. There had been a few times throughout the day when she'd been thinking about what to do when Damon dropped her off.

"Thanks for picking me up." Laura said as they walked up to her house.

"Anytime. You gonna be okay?" Damon asked sweetly, as they stood outside on the porch.

"I'll survive. Somehow, I always do." Laura shrugged.

"You know, Stefan won this round for us today. He pushed Klaus to the edge and Klaus blinked." Damon told her.

"Can't say I was too keen on his methods." Laura sighed.

"Still, we needed it. Klaus has been calling all the shots, and Stefan beat him at his own game. He was the better villain." Damon said with a sound of pride in his voice.

"Don't sound so impressed." Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I can't help but be a little proud." Damon smiled, but then his face turned to concern. "Really, tell me, are you gonna be okay?" he asked as he stroked her cheek.

"You know, you can kiss me again." Laura smiled. "Although we do need to talk about it." She said.

"I know." Damon nodded. "You start to talk first."

Laura took a deep breath, knowing she was diverging from the show and soon she'd have no safety net of knowing where the story would take her if she continued to plot against the story she knew.

"I want to be with you Damon." Laura said, taking a step forward.

"But?" Damon raised an eyebrow, clearly picking up from the tone of her voice things weren't that straightforward.

"You just said we found Klaus's weakness. Well we don't want him finding out you are my weakness." She said. "So, we either sneak around, and hope we don't get caught until he's gone, or we wait." She suggested.

"Why would me being your weakness be a problem?" Damon asked.

"Klaus was targeting Jeremy when he wanted to retaliate, I don't want him to do the same to you." Laura said.

"We could always go to Denver." Damon joked, causing Laura to laugh, especially as she knew what happened between Damon and Elena in Denver.

"I can't lose you Damon." Laura whispered, as she stroked his face tenderly.

"I'm not going anywhere." Damon promised, before lowering his head and gently kissing her.

Once again, the kiss was tender and gently. Laura responded by parting her lips to allow Damon to kiss her more fully. They wrapped their arms around each other and deepened the kiss. It was not the passionate kiss Damon and Elena shared in the motel room; this was them promising themselves to one another. Passion would have to wait, telling Damon they may have a future together and him agreeing to it, was more important. Regardless of the motive behind the kiss, Laura found this second kiss even more mind-blowing than the first.

Eventually they pulled away from the kiss, leaving Laura almost breathless. However, they needed to focus on what was coming, and a certain person in particular was going to need addressing.

"We'll have to wait to tell Stefan about our decision to be together, until this all blows over. We can't tell him while he's in revenge mode. It's not right." Laura smiled sadly.

Damon nodded. "I know we need to tell him. Just not right now." He agreed. "I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens." He smiled. "Good night Elena." She said.

"Good night, Damon." Laura replied as she walked inside and watched Damon leave before closing the door behind her.

The next morning was chaos as Jeremy was due to leave for Denver. They'd spent the morning loading his luggage into Laura's car, even though Laura knew he'd be back in a couple of weeks. Eventually it was almost time for Jeremy to leave. Laura knew Bonnie was supposed to turn up in the show, but she wasn't sure now after she'd told Bonnie Jeremy wouldn't be away long. Laura and Jeremy were standing in the hall, Laura squeezing him as if she didn't want him to go. And oddly, she didn't, because then realized, if she made too many more changes, she might not be getting him back in a few weeks after all. She just hoped Bonnie realized that.

"You're gonna have to let me go, eventually." Jeremy smiled.

"Be safe, okay?" Laura made him promise.

"Yeah, okay, all right. Alaric's waiting." Jeremy nodded as Laura noticed Bonnie arriving.

"Good, you haven't left yet." Bonnie smiled.

"What are you doing here?" Jeremy asked.

"I came to say goodbye." Bonnie told him as she gave Jeremy hug.

Jeremy grabbed his stuff and smiled at Laura and Bonnie for one last time before getting into the car next to Ric, who was driving. Laura and Bonnie waved goodbye as they left for the airport. Once they'd gone, Laura turned to Bonnie.

"Have you managed to find anything in Emily's grimoire?" she asked.

"No." Bonnie shook her head. "So, I went through the grimoire's the Martin's left. You know who they are right?" Bonnie frowned.

"Yeah." Laura nodded. "They collected grimoire's, they worked with Elijah." She said.

"That's them." Bonnie nodded. "Well anyway, there is something on one of them about interference from the other side." She said.

"Go on." Laura said excitedly.

"You were right. The herbs won't work." Bonnie continued. "The only way to break the cycle is if Esther is turned into a vampire. Then her spell on him will break." She shrugged.

"Shit!" Laura rolled her eyes.

"Why?" Bonnie asked. "Is it going to be that hard?"

"Who would dare fool the original witch into turning her into a vampire?" Laura asked. "And it also means we've got to involve your mom, something I was trying to avoid." She said.

"If we have to go and find her, we will." Bonnie nodded. "But we need to tell Ric that there is a problem with the ring." She said. "Both he and Damon need to know. Let's just hope it's not too late."

"Somehow, I think it is." Laura said sadly. "The Wickery Bridge fundraiser was last night."

"Oh." Bonnie sighed.

"I'll tell Damon first. See what he suggests." Laura said.

"Look, I gotta go." Bonnie told her. "I need to go through some of those grimoires." She said as she walked down the porch steps.

"That's okay, I'm meeting Matt." Laura smiled as Bonnie left to go home.

An hour later, Laura was stood on Wickery Bridge with Matt. She'd never understood the scene in the show, but now she was living Elena's life, it made more sense. She needed someone human, normal in her life, to keep her on the straight and narrow. And right now, she needed to say goodbye to the demons which clearly plagued Elena. Also, Laura herself needed to say goodbye to her old life. Although she'd been told that there would be a time when she could make the choice to go back, nothing had yet provided an opportunity, and she was beginning to not only lose hope, but also her old life was starting to seem like a very distant memory. As if that was what had been the dream, not the life she was living now.

"You're not gonna jump, are you?" Matt asked.

"Thanks for coming. I was thinking about what you said last night, about us being stuck here in this world of crazy." Laura told him.

"I was buzzed, Elena. I can't be held responsible for being judgmental." Matt declared.

"I do feel stuck, Matt." Laura admitted. "I feel like, I've been holding on to that girl who existed before her parents died. Holding on to the knowledge that she should have died here with her parents. The girl who had a normal life and didn't fall in love with vampires." She said sadly.

"You're not that girl anymore. It's okay if you want to let her go." Matt said kindly.

"Is it? Cause I don't know if she would have done that, she wouldn't have disappointed her parents like I disappointed them. My parents, the ones who fought vampires." Laura frowned.

"My two cents, as a guy who knew that other girl: you're doing a lot better than you think." Matt assured her as he picked up some dandelions from the ground, held them out in front of him as he faced the side of the bridge, looking out over the water.

"Here lies Elena Gilbert. A fun girlfriend and an amazing friend." Matt smiled as he tossed the flowers into the river below.

'Her lies Laura Jenkins, schoolteacher, dog owner and doppelganger soul.' Laura thought to herself.

"I guess now is the time the new Elena Gilbert needs to take charge of herself." Laura smiled to Matt as they wandered off the bridge, and towards Matt's truck.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Warning for bad language.**

Damon, Laura, Alaric and Bonnie were all gathered in the Salvatore boarding house library, as Laura and Bonnie wanted to discuss the issue with the ring. Laura and Bonnie had already gone through their story regarding what they thought was wrong with the ring, and about the dreams Bonnie was having about the coffins. They'd even come up with a plan on how they had come up with the idea that Esther was behind it all. They just needed to convince Damon and Ric.

"What's with the family conference?" Damon asked. "Is this like an intervention or something?" he joked.

"We need to talk about Ric's ring." Laura told them; her face deadly serious.

"Is it malfunctioning?" Ric asked.

"No." Bonnie shook her head. "But I do have an idea what might be going on. And you're not going to like it." She sighed.

"Have you had any blackouts lately?" Laura asked Ric.

"I… I don't know." Ric frowned. "Why?"

"What's going on?" Damon frowned.

"I think the ring is fine, but I think someone is delaying Ric coming back from the other side." Bonnie explained.

"Why would they do that?" Ric asked.

"Who would do it?" Damon looked puzzled.

"I think the better questions are how would they delay his return, and who could delay his return." Laura sighed.

"Have you two already discussed this?" Ric asked as Laura and Bonnie both nodded.

"If Bonnie is right, it's bad, really bad." She cast her eyes down.

Ric and Damon looked at each other uncomfortably.

"I'm gonna need a drink for this." Ric said. "Want one?" he asked Damon who simply nodded and looked at Bonnie and Laura with trepidation.

"We can't be certain who it is, but we have a fairly good idea." Laura assured them, although the minute they found out who it was, she knew it wouldn't be of any comfort whatsoever.

"Every time you die, you go to the other side." Bonnie started.

"I thought the other side was for supernatural beings only." Damon frowned.

"Technically it is. But that ring makes a person supernatural in dying as they will come back alive. So instead of dying, their spirit goes to the other side. Where there are other spirits who, if powerful enough, can talk to them." She said.

"Powerful enough? You mean witches." Damon asked.

"Yes." Bonnie nodded. "We think a witch from the other side is either trying to stop you from coming back, or they are delaying your return by putting you under some kind of spell." She went on.

"That's why we need to know if you've had any blackouts. We need to know if you've done anything out of the ordinary recently." She said, as Damon's eyes momentarily glazed over.

"Why would a witch use me?" Ric asked.

"They can only communicate with someone who has died a supernatural death." Bonnie explained. "My guess is they want you to do something for them." She said.

"You said you had an idea who it could be." Damon frowned.

"Well we can't be sure, but there are clues." Laura told them. "The first time the ring started to act up was after the Lockwood party, right?" she asked as Damon and Ric nodded. "So, we know this witch wasn't interested in interfering before then."

"Only an extremely powerful witch would be able to do what this witch is doing." Bonnie continued to explain. "When I brought Jeremy back, it was an old witch on the other side who did it, so that she could get him to see ghosts and use them to do her bidding." She told them.

"Wait, you think it's the same witch?" Damon asked.

"The one who tried to kill you?" Ric looked at Laura with concern.

"Yes." Laura nodded.

"Oh fuck!" Damon sighed. "If you're right, we can't have you two living together. Not if he's under some spell to kill you."

"We don't know if that's her plan yet." Laura quickly said. "I think he would have done it by now if that was what she wanted."

"Who do you think the witch is?" Damon asked.

"Well, to get rid of the ghosts, we needed the necklace from the Original witch." Bonnie said.

"Klaus and Rebekah's mom?" Ric looked shocked as both Laura and Bonnie nodded at the same time.

"How can you be sure?" Damon asked.

"I'm about ninety percent certain it's her." Bonnie said. "She's been trying to manipulate things in the land of the living since the summer. Now she's trying to use Ric to do her dirty work."

"How do we stop it?" Ric put his hands in his head. "We can't kill her as she's already dead."

"I know what we have to do, but we can't have the conversation in front of Ric." Bonnie told him.

"Sorry Ric. Its too risky." Laura apologized. "If we tell you our plan, and something happens, she'll find out."

"Yeah, I get it." Ric sighed.

"I still don't like you two living together." Damon looked between Ric and Laura.

"I agree." Ric nodded. "But we need to make sure I can't get to Laura." He said to Damon. "Do you think you can lock me up with some home comforts?" he asked.

"What?" Laura exclaimed.

"Hotel del Salvatore?" Damon raised an eyebrow with a smirk on his face. "An all expenses paid, including booze, hotel with luxurious comforts… okay, the basement." He shrugged as Ric got up.

"What are you doing?" Laura asked.

"The sooner you stop this witch, the better." Ric told them. "Damon, do you want to lock me up now?" he asked as Damon nodded and began to follow him to the basement.

"I'll see if I can find something temporary to help." Bonnie called out after them.

A few minutes later Damon came back from the basement alone and poured himself a drink.

"Ric can't hear us here." Damon told them. "Now we can make plans to stop him. But I think he might have already done something." He told them.

"What?" Bonnie asked.

"The town medical examiner was found dead this morning." Damon told them. "He'd been staked like a vampire, even though he wasn't one." He continued. "I think it might have been one of Ric's stakes."

"Do we tell Sheriff Forbes?" Bonnie asked.

"No!" Damon said in disgust. "If a witch has done this, she has used Ric's body to kill the medical examiner, so unless you can find a way for Liz to put her in jail, then you need to make another plan."

"The only thing we can do is try to break the spell." Bonnie said.

"And how do you think you can do that Witchy?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"It is possible to cut off a witch's magic." Bonnie told him.

"How?" Damon asked.

"Turn her into a vampire." Bonnie said.

"But she's already dead." Damon frowned. "Not only that, but we don't know where she is."

"Actually, I think we do." Bonnie told him. "You see I've been having some strange dreams lately. About the coffins."

"There's four coffins." Laura started. "One is Elijah. Two of them belong to the other siblings, which leaves one mystery coffin." She said.

"Mama Original." Damon nodded. "And how do you propose to wake her?"

"I've already tried opening the coffin for Stefan." Bonnie told him. "But it is magically sealed. In my dreams, a woman opens the coffin."

"Who?" Damon asked.

"My mom." Bonnie said uncomfortably. "I think I need to find my mom to open it. The locking spell has a knot which means it requires to directly related generations of the same bloodline." She explained.

"Great, give her a call." Damon grinned.

"I can't." Bonnie sighed.

"Bonnie hasn't seen her mom since she was a little girl. Her mom walked out on them." Laura explained.

"Ah." Damon winced. "Do you even know where she is?" he asked.

Bonnie shook her head. "We'll have to search through all of the Abby Bennett's in the country." She said. "But before we do that, we need a real plan to turn the Original witch."

"I'll stick some blood in her and snap her neck." Damon shrugged.

"I don't think you're strong enough." Bonnie told him. "We need an Original to do it." She said.

"We could undagger Elijah." Laura suggested.

"Absolutely not!" Damon exclaimed. "He won't do it. Why don't we wake Mama Original and find out what she wants? She might be the key to killing Klaus. If that was why she wanted Ric, then maybe we could…help her." He shrugged.

"Klaus's mom tried to kill Elena." Bonnie said. "We can't be sure she won't try it again. We need an Original on our side, and I think Elijah might be our best option."

"I'll need to talk it over with Stefan." Damon shrugged.

"No!" Laura argued. "He can't know about any of this Ric business. But we can tell him that we're looking for Bonnie's mom so that we can find out how to open the coffin." She said.

"First, we need to find my mom." Bonnie sighed.

"And I'll need to get Ric some stuff from home to make him more comfortable." Laura said. "We might need to sedate him, just in case he has some kind of blackout." She added, remembering they might need to bring Meredith Fell into the land of crazy. "We just need a doctor who won't ask too many questions."

"I think I have the perfect candidate." Damon grinned, much to Laura's delight. "So, let's get going. We meet back at Elena's in a couple of hours with a list of Abby Bennett's?" he suggested.

Laura and Bonnie looked at each other. "Deal." Laura agreed as they left to go their separate ways.

Four hours later, Bonnie and Laura were pretending to look through images of women with the name Abby Bennett. Laura had told Bonnie that it was Damon who found her, so there wasn't much point in them searching too hard. They had been delayed because Stefan had wanted to see Bonnie about opening the coffins. She had admitted to him about the dreams, which Laura had agreed with, and telling him that they would be searching for her mom.

"It's surreal. Having to track down a woman, who bailed on her own kid." Bonnie shook her head.

"Thank you for helping with this. I just wish we could leave the coffin alone and let Stefan obsess over opening up the coffin." Laura apologized.

"The coffin is spell shut. That makes it a witch problem. So, it does fall on me. I was bound to see my mother again sooner or later." Bonnie shrugged as Damon finally arrived holding a manila folder in his hand.

"Sooner." Damon announced. "Abby Bennett Wilson, Monroe, North Carolina. Born in Mystic Falls Hospital, graduated at Mystic Falls High...blah blah blah." He added as he handed Bonnie the folder, which she opened and looked at the driver's license record. "A little compulsion helps speed up the research process." Damon said smugly.

"This is her." Bonnie agreed.

"Yep. Road trip. I call shotgun." Damon said chipperly.

"Yea-No." Laura shook her head.

"Want me to hang out in the back with _you_?" Damon wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"You're not coming, Damon." Laura warned.

"Why? I'm the one who found her." Damon pouted.

"Okay, Damon. Look. Bonnie hasn't seen her mom in over fifteen years. She's a witch, which means she won't invite you in and might even scare her off from talking to us." Laura explained. "Plus, you're meant to be babysitting Ric, and possibly trying to find a way to undagger Elijah?" She added, staring at him sweetly, hoping he'd understand it wasn't anything personal.

"What's going on with you two?" Bonnie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We kissed. Now it's weird. Have a great trip." Damon shrugged and left.

Bonnie looked at Laura in shock, who in turn was surprised that Damon had spilled the beans about the kiss after their conversation. Deciding to forget about what Damon said, Laura wrote down Abby's address on a piece of paper.

"Lets go." She said, leaving the envelope and record behind, knowing Stefan would find it, but she needed him away from Damon, so that Damon could remove the dagger from Elijah.

"I just can't believe that I'm actually going to see her. Or meet her. Sort of. Since I don't really remember her." Bonnie said, as the were driving to the address from the records.

"You don't really talk about her." Laura frowned.

"What's to say? She left, never wrote, never called. Not even when my Grams died." Bonnie shrugged. "Could we talk about you and Damon instead?" she asked. "I thought you had every intention of making sure Elena ended up with Stefan. What happened?"

"I got to know Damon and Stefan. It changed my perspective a little." Laura admitted.

"And the kiss?" Bonnie smirked.

"What about it?" Laura asked innocently.

"I mean...was it good?" Bonnie giggled.

"There isn't a word in the English language to describe it. And they weren't even making out style kisses." Laura blushed.

"They?" Bonnie looked at her in shock.

"We kissed twice." Laura admitted. "But we're not taking anything any further because I don't want Klaus to use Damon against me." She added. "And I can't fall in love with him yet. The consequences are too huge."

"What do you mean?" Bonnie's asked, however, Laura didn't get a chance to as Bonnie's cellphone rang. "Oh...It's Stefan. I told him I'd call him as soon as I got the address." She said, looking at the caller I'd, and fortunately forgetting the conversation they were having.

"Ignore him. Bonnie, your about to see your mom for the first time in fifteen years. Nobody is allowed to ruin that moment." Laura demanded.

"Yeah, but he's gonna keep at it until I pick up." Bonnie shrugged.

"Fine. Laura rolled her eyes and answered the phone. "What?" she snapped.

"Where are you?" Stefan asked.

"Bonnie and I are gonna spend the night at the lake house, while we wait for Sheriff Forbes to give us new addresses." Laura lied.

"You're kidding me, right?" Stefan sighed.

"No, Stefan, I'm not. We need a night off from your insanity." Laura said angrily.

"Klaus is getting antsy. He knows that I'm stalling. We need to move faster." Stefan warned her.

"Well, we're doing everything we can. So, could you maybe not call every five minutes?" Laura yelled.

"Sure, Elena. Whatever you say." Stefan agreed, as Laura hung up.

"He is so fucking annoying me." Laura growled as Bonnie burst into laughter at her reaction.

Eventually Laura and Bonnie arrived at what Laura recognized to be Abby's house.

"Cute house." Laura commented.

"Yeah, in the middle of nowhere." Bonnie frowned.

"You ready?" Laura asked with concern in her voice as they get out of the car and rang the doorbell. A teenage boy, who Laura recognized as Jamie, came up the stairs beside them.

"Hey, there." Jamie said.

"Hey, we're looking for, um, Abby Wilson." Laura smiled.

"She not home. There anything I can do for you?" Jamie asked.

"It's okay, we can come back." Bonnie said nervously, turning to leave, however, Laura stopped her by grabbing Bonnie's arm and pulling her back.

"I'm sorry, but you look so familiar." Jamie frowned in confusion.

"Ehm, Abby is my mom." Bonnie smiled nervously.

"Oh...I'm Jamie. You guys wanna come inside? Right this way." Jamie offered as they went inside, straight to the kitchen.

"You guys sure you don't want anything? We got fresh OJ, coconut water, some mango guava something." Jamie asked.

"Water is fine." Bonnie nodded.

"Cool." Jamie smiled.

"So, are we...like related?" Bonnie asked.

"Oh, nah. Abby's not my mom." Jamie told her. "She dated my old man back in the day. He's kind of a deadbeat, so when they broke up, she took me in. Put me through school. Didn't freak out when I totaled her car. Twice." explained.

"She sounds...great." Bonnie said, jealousy evident in her voice. Just at that moment Abby walked in.

"Jamie? Whose car's out front?" Abby called out.

"That's mine. I'm Bonnie. Your daughter." Bonnie stood up, announcing herself.

Abby looked initially shocked, but quickly composed herself. "Hello, Bonnie." She said.

For the next half an hour Abby was going through old photos of her since she'd left Mystic Falls. Abby popped into the kitchen for a moment, leaving Bonnie holding a picture of Jamie dressed in a graduation gown in her hands.

"How are you holding up?" Laura frowned.

"I'll be fine. I'm not here to get my mom back, I'm just here to get her help." Bonnie swallowed as Abby came walking in from the kitchen.

"So, I hope you guys are hungry, cause...food has always been my go-to ice-breaker." Abby smiled.

"You have a really beautiful home." Laura said.

"You're so sweet. Just like your mom." Abby told her.

"You knew my mom?" Laura asked.

"Miranda was my best friend." Abby said.

"So, you had a daughter and a best friend, and you still left?" Bonnie said sarcastically.

"My best friend is why I left." Abby told them. "Fifteen years ago, a vampire came to town. Looking for you, Elena. Looking for the doppelgänger. No one could manage to kill him. So, I lured him out of town and cast a spell to desiccate him in a crypt in Charlotte."

"Mikael. He was an Original vampire." Laura frowned as Bonnie looked at Laura in shock, before turning back to Abby.

"It took every ounce of power I had. Almost killed me. I recovered. But my magic didn't. My powers never came back." Abby shrugged.

"And neither did you." Bonnie spat.

"It wasn't that simple." Abby protested.

"It wasn't? You cast a spell, put Mikael down and then...what? You had to teach Jamie how to drive?" Bonnie shook her head with disgust.

"Bonnie..." Laura grimaced.

"This was a mistake. She has no magic. She can't help us." Bonnie said as she got up to leave, but Abby ran after her and grabbed her arm.

"Bonnie, wait, please. Don't go. Talk to me...Please?" Abby begged.

"I'll wait outside." Laura said, leaving Bonnie and Abby together alone to talk.

Outside the house, Laura wandered down to a barn when suddenly, but not entirely unexpected for Laura, Stefan was standing right in front of her.

"Hi, Elena. Nice lake house." Stefan raised his eyebrow.

"We had a change of plan." Laura folded her arms.

"So, what did you think, I wouldn't find out?" Stefan asked.

"Honestly, I don't give a fuck what you think." Laura smirked, her language throwing Stefan for a moment, before regaining his composure.

"This is _exactly_ why I didn't want you in the loop, Elena." Stefan shook his head.

"Yeah, because now you can't be a megalomaniac who does whatever he wants." Laura looked at him in disgust as Stefan angrily kicked a chair and broke it.

"Damn it!" Stefan said through gritted teeth as suddenly Jamie entered the barn.

"Hey! Everything all right out here?" Jamie asked.

"Hey, Jamie, go back inside, okay? Please, trust me, it's better off for you there." Laura nodded.

"I don't think so." Jamie said as he walked towards Stefan.

"I'd listen to her. Get back upstairs, man." Stefan warned him.

"I said, I don't think so." Jamie insisted.

Stefan grabbed Jamie by the throat. "Go back upstairs, before I tear your damn throat out. Do you understand me?" he compelled him before letting Jamie go, who simply walked away.

"I don't think you realize how bad you are!" Laura yelled at Stefan.

"It's the way it has to be, Elena." Stefan said flatly.

"Oh, yeah, right. Out-villain the villain. I get it." Laura said sarcastically.

"You're not supposed to be here." Jamie's voice came from behind. Laura and Stefan looked at him only to seen him facing them with a shotgun in his hand.

"Jamie, what are you doing?" Laura asked.

"What I was told. He's not supposed to be here." Jamie said, his voice calm and controlled.

"Elena, he's compelled." Stefan warned as Jamie shot Stefan with wooden bullets, causing Stefan to fall on the ground on his back.

Jamie threw the gun to the ground and grabbed hold of Laura, who despite her training, wasn't strong enough to take on Jamie. He pulled her up against a wooden post and tied her hands behind her back, all the while Stefan was lying on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Why are you doing this?" Laura asked.

"Stop moving." Jamie commanded.

"Jamie, let me go. Jamie, he needs help!" Laura begged.

"Jamie!" Abby cried out.

"Bonnie?" Laura yelled as she saw Abby pulling an unconscious Bonnie towards a car. Jamie made sure Laura's ropes were tight enough and went up to help Abby.

As soon as he'd gone, Laura set to work on breaking the rope by rubbing it up and down a nail on the post. After about ten minutes, she felt the cords starting to break.

"I think I can get free." Laura told Stefan. "I've almost got it." she said as Jamie returned.

"Abby hasn't called yet." Jamie told them.

"Jamie, please, just let us go." Laura begged, but instead he cocked his gun.

"No! Please don't do anything. Look, I don't know why I shot him, I don't know why I'm holding this gun, but if you move or do anything, I'm to shoot him again." Jamie shrugged.

"Okay, I won't. Who gave you that gun?" Laura asked.

"A man came by earlier today, he gave me a wooden buckshot and told me if anyone got in our way, I'm supposed to shoot him." Jamie explained.

"What else did he say?" Laura asked.

"If Abby didn't find the location of some coffins, I'm supposed to shoot myself." Jamie told her.

"What about me? What did he say about me?" Laura frowned.

"I'm not supposed to hurt you." Jamie said.

"Are you sure? Because these ropes are so tight, that it _is_ hurting me." Laura winced dramatically.

The compulsion forced Jamie to help make Laura more comfortable, however Laura had already broken enough of the rope to free herself. She just needed Jamie out of the picture for his own safety. As soon as he reached her, Laura suddenly released herself, before grabbing the gun from Jamie and knocking him out with it. As soon as she was happy that he was only unconscious, she rushed over to Stefan to help get the bullets out.

"What can I do to help?" Laura asked.

"Every time I move, the wood shifts inside of me. I can feel it scraping against my heart. You need to get the pieces out." Stefan groaned.

Laura nodded and began to remove the wood from Stefan's body, which wasn't a pleasant job. She had blood all over her fingers, and she could feel insides of his body, whenever she stuck her fingers into his chest, making her want to be sick. However, she managed to stay strong, calm and focused in front of him while he screamed in pain.

"I'm just trying to help!" Laura insisted.

"Just get it out, Elena, please. Just get it out." Stefan begged.

"Keep screaming, maybe I'll feel sorry for you." Laura said sarcastically, however, finally she managed to get the last piece out, which she threw to the ground. "There. All done." she added, wiping her hands.

Stefan had stopped screaming, instead he looked at her with interest. "You've changed. Something is different about you. You're stronger. Tougher." he said.

"You're not the only one, who changed, Stefan. We all had to." Laura shrugged.

"It's good though." Stefan nodded.

"There's something I have to tell you. And it's not because I feel guilty, that it happened. It's because I feel that you should know." Laura stood up. "I kissed Damon." she told him.

Stefan looked down, avoiding Laura's eyes, she could tell her was upset. For the first time since she'd met him, Laura felt bad for him. Stefan wordlessly got up and walked away.

"Stefan." Laura called out, however he ignored her, so Laura followed him to his car.

When she caught up with him, Stefan was leaning against his car, looking thoughtful.

"Stefan...say something. Please?" Laura begged.

"I shouldn't have kidnapped you. The car, the bridge, that was too far." Stefan turned around and apologized.

"Thank you." Laura said, grateful for the apology, although it would never be enough to change her mind about him.

"But you shouldn't have lied to me today. You can't go off and do things like that, Elena. Not while Klaus is still alive." Stefan told her.

"I know. I just...I wanted to give Bonnie a moment with her mom...without everything else getting in the way." Laura said.

"Without _me_ getting in the way." Stefan raised an eyebrow.

"Without anyone getting in the way." Laura corrected him. "Damon wanted to come too and I told him he couldn't." she said.

"Yeah, right." Stefan rolled his eyes.

"I didn't plan on kissing him." Laura protested. "It just…happened." She shrugged.

"You're better than him, Elena. You're better than both of us." Stefan shook his head.

"How can you say that?" Laura asked. "You don't know me anymore, and I don't think you really know Damon as well as you think you do. I've changed, a lot Stefan. I've grown up, and I'm coming to realize a lot about life. I'm not the naïve little girl you met outside the men's room. I don't need protecting or saving. I can take care of myself." She said.

"Damon is just using you to get back at me." Stefan spat as he opened his car door.

"It was only a kiss." Laura insisted, suddenly feeling guilty, as Stefan rolled his eyes at her and climbed inside the car. "You really don't know him very well do you." she called out as he slammed the car door shut and drove off.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**There's a nice bit of Daura in this chapter, but it is in relation to the plot and not just their relationship. This chapter is also far more removed from the show than the previous chapters.**

**Warning for bad language and mild sexual content. **

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Laura, Bonnie and Abby were sat in a waffle house just outside of town, a place in which Laura hoped neither Damon nor Stefan would ever visit. They were meeting to have breakfast, and for Bonnie and Laura to tell Abby about Laura being from the Plane of Preparation. However, Laura had arranged for someone else to attend their meeting, a person whom Laura thought might be able, and would be willing, to help. In the meantime, they sat down at a booth and a waitress brought over coffee while they ordered food.

"So, what's this all about?" Abby frowned.

"Have you ever heard of the Plane of Preparation?" Bonnie asked.

Abby shook her head. "I've been out of touch with other witches for a long time. There's nothing in my grimoires about that." She said.

"I think I can help in that department." Came a voice from behind. They all turned to see Elijah, looking impeccable as always, in a grey suit, stood in front of them. "May I join you?" he asked as Laura shuffled over to allow him to sit.

Abby eyed Elijah suspiciously. "Are you a vampire?" she whispered.

"Correct. An Original, to be more precise." Elijah smiled.

"Elijah seems to know about my situation and can help with our plans." Laura told them.

"That obviously depends on the plan." Elijah corrected her.

"What do you know about the Plane of Preparation?" Bonnie asked. "And how do you know about it?" she frowned.

"Over the years, many have sought me out to present a doppelganger." Elijah started as the waitress arrived with the waffles. "Can I just have a coffee." He asked the waitress who smiled and wrote down his order.

Once she'd brought Elijah his coffee, everyone else began to tuck into their food while he continued to tell them what he knew.

"Many vampires wished to curry favor with Klaus, so they believed they could do so by handing over the doppelganger." Elijah explained. "However, most did not know what Katerina looked like, and for the most part, it was not the right doppelganger." He told them.

"There are other doppelgangers?" Bonnie asked.

"There are many doppelgangers in the world." Elijah told them. "They all serve different purposes. However, they all had one thing in common. When they turned eighteen, something about them would change. Not just standard puberty changes, but personality changes." He said.

"How did you know?" Laura frowned.

"Some stayed in my care for longer than they should have." Elijah admitted. "I became curious, they seemed to know of the future, or at least their own future. Many believe doppelgangers have psychic powers, however, after much research, I discovered it was something else."

"The Plane of Preparation." Laura said as Elijah nodded.

"So, Elena, what is the name you were given before you inhabited Elena Gilbert's body?" Elijah asked.

"Laura Jennings, and I'm a forty-year old High School history teacher." She announced quietly.

"And do you know about all of us and our story through a show called the Vampire Diaries?" he asked.

"Yes." Laura looked at him in shock. "How do you know?"

"You are the third doppelganger I have met over the last ten years." Elijah told her. "The other two knew everything from a TV show called the Vampire Diaries. Up until then, they were just confused, or would say they knew things from books. I assumed with the passing of time and technology; the Plane of Preparation has started using more advanced techniques."

"How many other doppelgangers are there in the world?" Bonnie asked.

"Thousands, I suspect." Elijah replied, before turning back to Laura. "Unlike the other doppelgangers, I believe our paths are intrinsically entwined." Elijah raised an eyebrow, as Laura nodded in agreement. "Do tell us what you know. Although only the essential parts." He said.

"So, what I know of the Originals, which is really important, is if you kill one, their entire sire-line dies with them." Laura told them.

"Fascinating." Elijah frowned. "I believe that offers my family a degree of protection. Continue." He said.

"Klaus killed your mother." Laura winced.

Elijah nodded; however, his face was as emotionless as a poker player. "I am not surprised." He said. "She was the one who placed the curse upon him. I have often suspected he was the true culprit, and not our father."

"Damon and Stefan want Abby and Bonnie to open the coffin which is holding your mother." Laura went on. "They think she is the key to killing Klaus."

"Is she?" Elijah asked.

"Yes. But not just Klaus." Laura told him. "She wants all of you dead."

"I see." Elijah nodded. "Well then she needs to be stopped." He said.

"She has also been interfering with my friend Ric." Laura said. "He has a ring where he can come back to life, but only if he has experienced a supernatural death. Every time he has gone over to the other side, she has been talking to him, creating an alter-ego, making him anti-vampire." She continued. "He already killed the medical examiner, but we've got him locked up to prevent any more deaths. To do that, we told everyone that Bonnie had read about ghosts being able to influence people in her grimoire." She said. "Your mother will want to turn him into an Original who is stronger, and faster than all of you, and will kill you."

"Except there is no white oak stake." Elijah smiled. "Therefore he is harmless."

"There was another white oak tree." Laura told him. "It was chopped down and used to build Wickery Bridge, which is currently under renovation." She said.

"We'll come back to the stake a little later." Elijah said. "And how was the situation resolved?" he asked.

Laura took a deep breath and looked to Bonnie and Abby before addressing Elijah once more. "Your mom linked you all together." She said. "So that killing one Original would kill all Originals. She drew her powers from the Bennett bloodline. To stop her, the bloodline had to be severed." She lowered her eyes.

"You mean kill one of us?" Bonnie asked, looking stunned.

"No." Abby shook her head. "The bloodline would still remain intact. When a witch dies, they are still a witch. There is only one way of stopping it. And as the bloodline would still be intact if Bonnie were to turn, I assume it is me that becomes the vampire." She said.

Laura nodded. "I'm sorry Abby. There was little choice as they had no time to make a backup plan." Laura shrugged, and Abby nodded in understanding.

"At least now we know our options." Elijah said.

"We thought we could try turning your mom into a vampire, hoping it would remove the spell from Ric." Bonnie said.

"It will stop her getting to Ric again, but it won't remove the spell." Abby told them.

"What can we do?" Laura asked.

"We could turn your friend into a vampire before she does, or alternatively we may have to kill him." Elijah told them. "How does my mother link us all together?" he asked

.

"She throws a ball." Laura told him. "She uses my blood to create a spell to link you all together. She puts a drop of it into the champagne, and when it is time for the toast you all drink it. By drinking it, the essence of my blood links you together. What happens to one, happens to all." She said. "Your brother Fin is in on it." She added.

"So, everyone except Fin needs to know that this is a trap." Elijah asked.

"Yes. He already knows the entire plan." Laura told them. "But if you don't drink the champagne her spell won't work, and she'll know something is wrong."

"Other than the three of us knowing about your situation, what other changes have you made since you arrived here?" Elijah frowned.

"I had Alaric put into a cell so that he can't hurt anyone else. Including himself." Laura told him.

"And the consequences of that action are…?" Elijah raised an eyebrow, while Laura though for a moment.

"So, Ric kills Bill Forbes." Laura started.

"He killed Caroline's dad?" Bonnie opened her eyes wide with shock.

"Bill does have vampire blood in his system; but refused to complete the transition." Laura told them.

"That means we don't know the consequences of Mr. Forbes survival." Elijah mused.

"I doubt he'll be happy about Caroline and Klaus." Laura said, before clamping her hand over her mouth.

"Caroline and Klaus?" Bonnie looked stunned.

"It's very one-sided… most of the time." Laura said, taking an uncomfortable deep breath.

"Any other potential consequences?" Elijah asked.

Laura thought for a moment. "I'm not sure, Ric and Dr. Fell become an item for a while. She blood-jack's Damon, and it is his blood what turns Bill and someone else into a vampire." She said uncomfortably. "That other person would have died without it." She cast her eyes down.

"Who is it?" Bonnie asked.

"Me." Laura winced.

"Oh wow!" Bonnie shook her head. "I'm so sorry."

"Oh… don't be." Laura smiled. "Elena might not have wanted to become a vampire, but I don't mind." She said. "Elena got over it. She got what she needed to help her."

"What's that?" Bonnie asked.

"Damon." Laura told her. "Except there were complications. Elena was in love with Damon and when she turned, she ended up sired to him."

"She must have been very deeply in love with Damon for that to happen." Elijah told her. "It takes a deep emotional connection to form a sire-bond."

"The problem is, we don't know how much vampire blood Meredith Fell has." Laura told them. "I might die if she doesn't have enough." she said.

"Will my blood be sufficient?" Elijah asked.

"Maybe as a back-up, but I thought I might ask Caroline." Laura said. "If Meredith saves her dad, then she'll be easy to convince that it might be a good idea to have some vampire blood at the hospital for our loved ones, just in case there isn't a friendly vampire in the neighborhood. But thank you Elijah." She smiled.

"My pleasure." Elijah smiled back.

"Another consequence is the discovery of the white oak tree which is made into Wickery Bridge." Laura told them. "In the show Rebekah finds it by looking at my phone when she abducts me. She tells Klaus and then she strips the wood from the bridge and burns it. As it stands, Rebekah and Klaus will now only find out if any of us tell them." She said.

"I would prefer it if the wood from the tree was destroyed." Elijah said. "That way we can prevent my mother from creating this stake." he suggested.

"You might one day need that stake." Laura told him, remembering the sacrifice made for Hope. "But your mother probably already knows about the wood, so she'll find a way to make a stake and use it if she can't destroy you by other methods."

"For the time being, the knowledge of the white oak goes no further than this table. At some point we might need it, but for now we do nothing." Elijah said as everyone else at the table nodded in agreement. He turned to Laura. "Have you made any other changes?" he asked as Laura blushed.

"I kissed Damon… twice." Laura admitted.

"And Elena didn't kiss Damon?" Elijah asked, seemingly unsurprised by this turn of event.

"Up until this point they had only kissed once." Laura told them. "But I kissed him again, and we have decided to put everything on hold until Klaus is dealt with." She then had an idea. "But there is a way to deal with Klaus without staking him." She told them. "Maybe we can avoid waking Esther if we take a short-cut. Then we can make plans to deal with her." She said.

"And how did you deal with Klaus?" Elijah asked.

Laura looked at Abby. "Bonnie desiccated him like you desiccated Mikael." She said. "If we can do that and keep him at bay for a hundred years or so, then he won't be mad if I turn." She said.

"I'm not sure…" Abby started.

"It's okay. I'm strong enough." Bonnie interrupted.

"If we desiccate him, it means Klaus wouldn't have gotten his hands on my blood, meaning he can't make any more hybrids." Laura continued. "He wouldn't be able to kill any of my friends as most would have already died. But it can't fall on the heads of Damon, Stefan, Caroline of me." She turned to Elijah. "It has to be an Original who is responsible for turning me. He can never know I know." She said

"Oh, that won't be a problem." Elijah smiled. "'m sure we can arrange something, as long as you arrange the blood." He said.

"I'll talk to Caroline today." Laura nodded.

"We need to take this one step at a time." Elijah told them. "First of all, Damon and Stefan need to know what happens when an Original vampire dies. I can tell them." He said. "I am due to meet Damon shortly. I can explain this to him. One would presume he will have his own ideas and plans. We can only manipulate situations up to a point. Those around us may well interfere." He said.

"What about your mother?" Bonnie asked. "Should we still open the coffin?"

"I doubt that will be necessary once the Salvatore brothers find out the consequences of opening it." Elijah replied. "I can always threaten to turn you if they don't agree." He smiled, before looking at his watch. Speaking of which, I am to meet Damon in an hour, therefore, I must leave you lovely ladies." He said, standing up. He straightened himself up, adjusting his tie and ensuring he was immaculate, before taking a one-hundred-dollar bill from his pocket. "Thank you for the most interesting breakfast I've had in many a century." He added, before leaving.

After he'd been gone for a minute, Abby turned to Laura.

"Do you trust him?" she asked.

Laura nodded. "He's honorable and will keep his word." She sighed. "But if he finds out the consequences of Klaus being desiccated for a hundred-years, he won't go through with it." She grimaced.

"Why?" Bonnie asked.

"Klaus is going to become a dad after a one-night stand. And Elijah will fall in love with the mother." Laura replied.

"We'll think of something." Bonnie sighed.

"I need to get back." Laura told them. "I need to get some more supplies for Ric, and I'm going to the hospital with Caroline." She said, before getting up and heading home.

Not long after Laura got home, she heard the doorbell ring. When she answered it, she found Sheriff Forbes waiting outside, holding a plastic evidence bag. Laura closed the door behind her and walked out onto the porch.

"Sheriff Forbes, hi. Is everything okay?" Laura asked.

"This is an unconventional conversation we're about to have." Liz told Laura.

"Sure, go ahead," Laura nodded.

"I assume you heard our medical examiner was murdered the night of the Wickery Bridge fundraiser." Liz said.

"Yeah. I heard something about it. Why?" Laura asked.

"We've been investigating. Someone drove this stake through his heart." Liz said, holding up the evidence bag with the stake in it to show Laura.

"That's looks like one of the ones from my parents' lake house." Laura frowned.

"That's why I'm here. I haven't told anyone, but forensics ran it for prints and found only one clean set." Liz told her. "Yours."

"What?" Laura said, pretending to be in shock, but then feigning regaining her composure. "Well, they're all gonna have my fingerprints on them as I examined them." She said.

"I know." Liz nodded. "That's why I don't think you're a suspect." She said. "I just thought you ought to know, someone might have stolen more of your stakes, so you might need to check. Does Alaric keep an inventory?" she asked.

"I could ask." Laura said. "But he's away visiting his mom and dad right now." She lied.

"Well, when he gets back, can you ask him to let me know if there are any others missing." Liz said.

"I will Sheriff Forbes." Laura smiled.

"Well I'll be going." Liz nodded and left. As soon as she'd gone, Laura called Damon.

"Elena." Damon answered the phone.

"Sheriff Forbes just came over to the house with the stake that killed Brian Walters. It was one of ours." Laura told him. "The only fingerprints on it are mine. Ric must have worn gloves or wiped his off." She said.

"So, _you're_ the prime suspect, huh?" Damon joked.

"No, I'm not. She doesn't think that I did it. She's just trying to find out how somebody got hold of one of my family weapons to kill a council member." Laura told him.

"What did you tell her?" Damon asked.

"I said Ric was at him mom and dads, and he keeps the records." She said.

"We don't even know if Ric was the one who did it." Damon said.

"Oh, come on…" Laura sighed.

"Okay, it probably was him." Damon agreed. "Luckily, the only thing to suggest he had anything to do with it, is that he had access to the weapons."

"Did Ric even see Brian at the fundraiser?" Laura asked.

"Ric saw Meredith and Brian fighting that night." Damon told her. "I'm not sure that would give him a motive if you don't know about the witchy mind control thing. Any idea who else knows about the secret weapon stash?" he asked.

"Who doesn't?" Laura sighed. "He's got weapons everywhere, here, the school, your car. It's an open secret." She said.

"Maybe we can pin it on Klaus, or one of his hybrid minions." Damon suggested.

"Sheriff Forbes is more likely to think it was Stefan." Laura protested. "He was crazy that night. And you know he was trying to get underneath Klaus's skin; he was capable of pretty much anything. Everyone thinks he drinks animal blood, so if he was going to kill anyone, they'd be more likely to suspect him doing it the old-fashioned way." She said.

"Ahh, makes me nostalgic for the time when Stefan was a bunny snacking pacifist." Damon joked. Anyway, got to go, you'll know more later." He said.

"Where are you?" Laura asked.

"Tea with an old friend." Damon replied before hanging up. Laura smiled, knowing he had met up with Elijah. However, any new plans couldn't be made until they'd finished their meeting.

Laura had made a list of things to do to help the situation the best she could. First of all, she needed to speak to Bill Forbes. Laura knew Tyler was capable of breaking the sire-bond himself. However, if Klaus found out that Bill was helping Tyler, Bill would be a dead man, and Caroline would never forgive Klaus. This meant they'd never have anyone to distract Klaus when they were planning his downfall. So instead Laura needed to persuade Bill to leave town. That was why she volunteered to go with Caroline to the hospital to pick up her dad, who had only survived Tyler almost killing him.

Laura and Caroline had just arrived at Mystic Falls Hospital, when Laura decided to discuss the matter of donating blood to Meredith.

"It's a good job Dr. Fell had some of Damon's blood to save your dad." Laura said.

"I know." Caroline agreed.

"I was thinking, it might be an idea to have a permanent supply of vampire blood kept at the hospital with her. What with Klaus around, you never know when it might be needed." Laura went on, hoping Caroline would pick up the hint.

"It's good to know she's got some." Caroline agreed.

"But would she have enough?" Laura asked. "Maybe you could offer some." She suggested. "I mean she did save your dad and all."

Caroline thought for a moment. "Wouldn't we be risking people turning if we do that?" she asked.

"If Dr. Fell agrees to make sure nobody is discharged within the first twenty-four hours of receiving it, then all it can do is good." Laura said.

Caroline smiled. "I like that idea. Putting something back into the community. Nobody would ever really know, but saving lives instead of taking them, it kinda would make me feel less guilty about drinking blood bags and depleting their stock." She grinned as they arrived at Dr. Fell's office door and knocked. Meredith opened the door and ushered Caroline in, and Laura followed.

"Are you Caroline?" Meredith asked.

"Yes. Dr. Fell, hi! Elena told me you helped out my dad." Caroline smiled.

"Did. Do you think you can get him to be a little more grateful? He spent half the night threatening to get my medical license revoked for saving his life." Meredith complained.

"Yeah, my dad's a little set in his ways. He spent his whole life hating vampires, so..." Caroline winced.

"So... he's not psyched about it being vampire blood that healed him. Yeah, he made that clear. I'm sorry. My bedside manner sucks, on no sleep." Meredith sighed.

"So, can I take him home?" Caroline asked.

"I signed his discharge papers late last night, just to shut him up." Meredith nodded.

"Oh, I... he didn't call or anything." Caroline frowned.

"That's gotta be hard. When your dad hates the one thing you can't change about yourself. I make it my business, to know who the vampires are in this town. Medical curiosity. I don't blab." Meredith whispered.

"Yeah, we've had our ups and downs." Caroline said sadly. "But as one of the town's resident good vampires, I was going to suggest I donate some of my blood. I'm sure you can never have too much vampire blood." She smiled.

"Are you sure?" Meredith frowned.

"I drink bloodbags, so this is my way of giving something back." Caroline nodded. "A payment of sorts."

"That'. Do you want to do it now, or come back another time?" Meredith asked. "It'll only take a few minutes." She said.

"Now I guess." Caroline shrugged.

Dr. Fell got out a syringe and hooked Caroline up to a tube, where her blood filled the bag much quicker than a human donation would. After only a couple of minutes, the bag was full.

"That should keep me going for a while." Meredith grinned.

"Great, let me know when you need some more." Caroline smiled.

"Tell your dad I said, 'you're welcome'." Meredith joked. "I've got to go." She said as she put the bloodbag in her refrigerator.

"Thanks." Caroline said before she and Laura left Meredith's office.

"I wonder where he is?" Caroline frowned.

"Maybe he's gone to help Tyler." Laura suggested.

"The old Lockwood cellar?" Caroline raised an eyebrow.

"You can't go." Laura shook her head. "If Tyler turns, he'll go straight for you. Do you want to have to beg Klaus for his blood again? And how is Tyler going to explain the reason for turning without Klaus asking him to?" she said.

"What do you suggest?" Caroline asked as they made their way to Caroline's car.

"Klaus can't find out about Tyler trying to break the sire-bond." Laura shook her head. "He'd kill him in an instant. Plus, he'd kill your dad too." She said.

"I know." Caroline nodded.

"We need to talk your dad out of helping Tyler, or at least leaving town to break the sire-bond." Laura suggested. "Go somewhere for a few days until he's done it. But your dad can't be with him, otherwise he'll end up dead." She shook her head.

"I'll call him when I get back." Caroline agreed.

Laura said she'd meet Caroline later, when she'd finally got in touch with her dad, in the meantime she would go home and shower. However, when Laura got home, much to her surprise, Damon was waiting for her in the kitchen with a drink in his hand, looking very downcast.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked.

"Well, today was a bust." He sighed.

"What happened?" Laura frowned, although she had a good idea as Damon and Stefan clearly hadn't gone to dinner with Klaus and Elijah, which meant Bonnie and Abby weren't opening the coffin.

"I undaggered Elijah." Damon told her. "I thought by getting him on our side after telling him about Klaus killing their mother, hoping it might give us time to open the coffin."

"So, what went wrong?" Laura frowned.

"Killing Klaus won't be as easy as we thought." Damon told her. "Although I wish he'd have told us this when he was breaking the sun and the moon curse, or whatever they fucking call it." He said angrily.

Knowing he needed to be calmed down, Laura rubbed Damon's back. "Go on." She said.

"If we kill an Original, then apparently every vampire created from that line will die." Damon told her.

"Who's line do you descend from?" Laura asked.

"Fuck knows." Damon swore. "Elijah didn't know who's line we come from. Only Rose knew who turned her, and she's dead." He shook his head.

"What about opening the coffin?" Laura said softly.

"Turns out Mama Original is in that coffin." Damon told her. "And although Elijah was angry with Klaus, he said that she was pretty vindictive and she might want them all dead." He poured himself another glass of whiskey and drank it straight down.

"Hey, look at me." Laura turned Damon around to face him. "We'll find another way to deal with Klaus." She assured him.

"I really thought having Elijah on our side would help." He said, his eyes looking sad. "I want Klaus out of the way. I want us to start living our lives again."

Laura looked at him sadly. She knew what he meant. The sooner Klaus was gone, the sooner they could be together. Laura took his face in her hands and brought it down to meet hers, so she could kiss him, hoping it would be of some comfort to him, and indeed to her. It was only a gentle kiss on the lips, but Damon smiled as they parted.

"What was that for?" Damon frowned.

"Well, it sounds like you've had a crappy day, and I thought you needed it." She smiled, knowing she was using Elena's own words.

Damon sighed dramatically. "I don't know if that's going to be enough to rescue this really, really crappy day." He shook his head innocently.

Laura stifled a laugh before pulling him towards her once more, however, Damon reciprocated the move. This time the kiss wasn't just a mere peck, or a promise of future passion, Damon was giving Laura a taste of the real thing. He wrapped his arms around Laura's waist, while she threw hers around his neck. They pulled each other in tight, their bodies fused together, separated by just a few layers of varying materials. Her lower back was pressed up against the island in the kitchen, giving them a degree of stability.

Damon's lips were soft, but firm, giving Laura an urge to suck them, but she knew it was too soon for that as Damon might misinterpret her signals. And although Laura herself would've taken things much further, she knew it would be unrealistic for Elena to do so at this point, therefore Laura had to restrain her sexual needs, a fact which she wasn't happy about. The reason Laura wasn't happy, was because Damon was able to give her more pleasure in one kiss, than any previous sexual encounter had ever done.

They started off gently, just as before, but instinct kicked in and passion took over. Damon tasted delicious, and Laura couldn't get enough. It was a mixture of bourbon and something she couldn't quite place, but whatever it was, it made her feel safe and loved. Their tongues caressed, danced and fought with one another, with a desire so desperate, almost like the need to breathe.

Damon's hands roams up and down Laura's back, while she stroked and scratched the nape of his neck, reflecting how turned on he was making her feel. Laura was also aware she was not the only one who was extremely turned on. She could feel his ever-growing manhood pressing up against her, with the knock-on effect of turning her on even more.

Laura lowered her hand to Damon's behind and pushed his pelvis deeper to hers, his manhood rubbing up against her nub, sending the signals around her body, all demanding Damon be inside her. Nature took over Laura's common sense as she wrapped her leg around Damon's hip so she could feel him rubbing against her. Initially Damon placed his hand under her thigh, pulling her in even tighter, however, he suddenly broke away from the kiss.

"We need to stop." Damon shook his head and dropping Laura's leg to the ground. "If we go any further, I won't be able to stop. And that's not right, not yet." He said sadly. "You'd have regretted it in the morning."

As annoyed as Laura was about them stopping, she knew Damon was right to halt their progress, and was glad he had more willpower than she did. Although, Damon was wrong about one thing, she wouldn't have regretted it. However, Damon knew Elena well, and Laura had to play the part.

"I guess it is a little soon." Laura nodded. "And we really should wait until we can be together without worrying about Klaus." She said, almost wanting to add Stefan to the end of the sentence, but holding back, knowing it would be a sore point with Damon.

"Yeah." Damon's face was full of confusion. "I thought we were pressing pause as sneaking around might get us caught." He frowned.

"This is pause." Laura smirked.

"Hmm." Damon smiled. "I think I quite like pause." He grinned as he pulled her into his arms. "I'm just wondering what happens when we press play." He said with a raised eyebrow and a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Oh, I like the idea of play." Laura said suggestively. "Playing sounds interesting. I just hope you're a good teacher."

"The best." Damon whispered, lowering his head to hers and kissing her gently once more, and Laura knew, without a shadow of a doubt, he was telling the truth.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura was still snuggled up in Damon's arms when she heard her phone ring. She wriggled free and took it out of her pocket, seeing it was Caroline.

"Hey Caroline." Laura answered. "Did you get in touch with your dad?" she asked.

"Yeah." Caroline sighed. "I think I'm gonna need your help. He's not going to let Tyler see me until he's broken the sire-bond." She complained.

"We could suggest Tyler go elsewhere to break the sire-bond." Laura suggested. "I mean, it's not safe him repeatedly turning in Mystic Falls, he's dangerous and out of control when he turns." She said. "He needs to be somewhere out of the way, where he can't hurt anyone. And Tyler knows that."

"I know." Caroline moaned.

"That way Klaus won't find out." Laura added. "It'll only be for a few days. But we need to talk to Tyler first."

"I'll do it." Caroline agreed. "I don't want him to leave, but you're right Elena, my dad will end up dead or a vampire if he continues to stay involved."

Damon frowned with confusion at that comment, so Laura put a finger to her lips and shook her head, hoping Damon would get the message to keep quiet.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Laura asked as Damon pouted at her suggestion.

"No, I'm going to talk to Tyler first. He should be able to talk him into it." Caroline said.

"Let me know what happens." Laura told her.

"I will." Caroline agreed. "I'll call Tyler now." She said before hanging up.

Damon frowned. "What was that all about?" he asked.

"After Tyler bit Caroline, he called in her dad to see if Bill could help him break the sire-bond." She told him.

Damon looked confused. "Is that even possible?" he asked.

Laura nodded. "Caroline's dad thinks that the sire-bond is because he is grateful to Klaus for no longer making him suffer the pain of turning. If turning stops being painful, then Tyler won't have any reason to feel grateful to Klaus, which would break the sire-bond." She explained.

"So, what's with the vampire part?" Damon asked.

"Bill decided to stay longer than he should have." Laura shook her head. "Tyler turned, lost control and attacked Bill. He nearly killed him. Bill is only alive because Dr. Fell gave him vampire blood. But if he tries that again, he's either going to end up in transition or dead because he hates vampires so much." She shrugged.

"Idiot!" Damon rolled his eyes.

"We need to get Caroline's dad out of town." Laura insisted. "He'll end up messing around in things and getting himself killed by Klaus."

"True." Damon agreed. "And annoyingly, we can't compel him to leave because he can't be compelled." He sighed. "I'd love to know how he does that."

Laura smiled, as an idea came to her. "I think that might be a good idea." She said. "That way, you won't need vervain to resist compulsion if Klaus tries anything. Although I still think Bill needs to leave town." She added hurriedly, as she started to text Caroline with her compulsion suggestion, remembering it would come in useful when Kol tried to compel Damon to kill Jeremy in season four.

"How?" Damon frowned. "I'm not having an Original compel me to hop on one leg."

"He could teach me the technique and you compel me." Laura suggested.

"Oh no! absolutely no fucking way!" Damon shook his head. "You need to be on vervain, that way my little brother can't make you his dessert." He said.

"Are you sure he's still drinking straight from the vein?" Laura asked, knowing that although Stefan had stopped in the show, it had been because of how he felt about Elena, Laura hadn't been quite as nice with him as Elena had, and she was concerned he might still be feeding on humans.

"I don't keep track of my brother's menu." Damon replied.

"Well someone is going to have to be compelled." Laura insisted.

Damon's eyes lit up. "What about…" he started.

"Not Matt!" Laura flashed her eyes at him. "We keep Matt out of this. If Rebekah gets free, he's her target, he needs to be on vervain." She insisted.

Damon took a deep breath and grimaced. "Yeah, about that." He said. "Elijah decided that the family needed to deal with Klaus. He's undaggered them all except one, who's apparently a mommy's boy and would try to open the coffin." He said.

"He needs Bonnie and Abby for that, so there's no chance of that happening." She said.

Laura's phone rang, her caller I'd showed it was Bonnie.

"Hey Bonnie." Laura answered the phone. "Damon's here, apparently they don't need you to open the coffin." She said, making sure Bonnie knew not to give too much away.

"I was hoping he might be." Bonnie replied. "Abby had an idea." She said. "Apparently vampires can get into a person's head, can't they?" she asked.

"As long as they're not on vervain." Damon replied. "Why?" he asked.

"Get Dr. Fell to give Ric a sedative, and go into his head, see if you can find out what Klaus's mom said." Bonnie suggested as Damon and Laura looked at each other with an expression of being impressed with Bonnie's idea. "If we can find out what she's telling him, or whether it is a spell, we might be able to counteract it. If you don't, he might need to be on suicide watch." She added.

"Well he's not on vervain." Damon shrugged.

"I'm sure Dr. Fell won't mind, not after Caroline offered to be a blood donor." Laura said. "Oh, and Bonnie, Damon came up with a great idea. We could ask Caroline's dad to teach us how to resist compulsion." She said.

"It's safer than taking vervain." Bonnie agreed.

"Especially now that Elijah, Rebekah and one of their other siblings is roaming around in Mystic Falls. We can't risk them having fun with the local vampire population." Laura said.

"They're going to try and keep Klaus under control for the time being." Damon told Bonnie.

"We might need them to help with our plan." Bonnie agreed.

"What plan?" Damon frowned.

"I was talking to my mom." Bonnie replied. "She was the witch who desiccated Mikael." She said. "We don't have a white oak stake, and we don't want to wake Klaus's mom, so I asked if it would be possible to desiccate Klaus for a hundred years or so."

"Considering how many times Klaus has daggered his siblings, I think they'll be queuing up to do it." Laura grinned at Damon, who was looking more and more impressed by the moment at Bonnie's suggestion.

"You think you're up for it Witchy?" he asked.

"My mom has the spell. I know how to tap into extra magic if I need to." She said quietly.

"What type of magic?" Laura asked, knowing Elena would protest if it was anything dangerous.

"I've found a new source of power." Bonnie told them. "It should be enough." She added.

Laura looked at Damon suspiciously, who simply shrugged. "I'll talk it over with Stefan." He said.

Bonnie hung up. Damon and Laura looked at each other for a moment and kissed. It wasn't the passionate kiss of earlier, this was a more familiar kiss of two people who were already intimate with each other. Unfortunately, it was also a goodnight kiss, as Damon needed to speak to Stefan about the prospect of desiccating Klaus.

Once Damon had gone, the house fell silent, giving Laura time to sit back and reflect upon the changes she'd made so far, and the plans they were making. Although they could put Klaus down for a while, it made no difference until Ric was safe from Esther's clutches. By going into his mind, Damon might find out what Esther had said to Ric, however, Laura knew it wasn't really a spell, he was just brainwashed. Whether he could be re-programmed just by compulsion, would require Ric to have to show his evil side and be compelled under those conditions.

Once Klaus was desiccated, Esther was dealt with and Ric returned back to normal, Laura decided it would be right for her to turn. She wanted to do it before Jeremy came back from Denver, this would prevent him talking her out of it. This was something she also needed to discuss with Damon. A few months ago, he would have been happy with her decision, but now she was no longer sure. Damon didn't care whether she was human or vampire, but he did care for her happiness, and trying to convince him that Elena Gilbert was happy to give up everything for him, was going to be tough. The only other alternative would be to create a circumstance where she died. A thought which absolutely terrified her.

This wasn't a subject she was going to discuss with Bonnie or Abby. She had made her position clear that she didn't mind turning, as opposed to Elena's complete distaste for it, but she hadn't told her she actively wished to turn. The only person who would truly understand would be Elijah, therefore he may have to be the one to help her out with turning.

One thing Laura had noticed over the past few days, was that she had thought less about her family, the ones from the Plane of Preparation, or her real family, not the coma family, depending on how she was viewing her circumstances that day. She was still struggling to believe she had lived a lie for forty-years and was only now entering the real world. However, one thing she couldn't deny was she was not only thinking less about her family, but she was having more difficulty in remembering what they looked like. Laura knew she had a dog, but she couldn't remember what breed her dog was, or even its name. On the other hand, she still remembered the future plots for the show, even if they were beginning to become a little vague. Laura decided, if the problem persisted, she'd need to speak to Bonnie or Elijah, to see what they could find out for her.

The next morning Laura woke to the sound of her phone ringing. Groggily she reached over and answered it, before checking the caller ID. It didn't take her long to establish that it was a distraught Caroline on the other end.

"He's gone." Caroline cried.

"Who… who's gone." Laura asked as she sat up.

"Tyler. He left without saying goodbye." Caroline told her.

"I thought you were going to see him to suggest he leaves town." Laura frowned.

"I was, but I saw my dad last night, so I didn't get the chance to see Tyler." Caroline explained. "I managed to talk dad into teaching us how to resist compulsion. I didn't mention anything about him leaving town." She said. "Anyway, I went to see Tyler this morning, and Mrs. Lockwood told me he left town. He wrote a letter saying he had to leave for a while and would be back soon, and that was it."

"Wow…" Laura said, stifling a yawn. "Have you tried calling him?" she asked.

"He's not answering his phone." Caroline told her. "I'm really worried." She said.

"He's probably trying to break the sire-bond without your dad's help." Laura suggested, remembering Tyler took off to break the sire-bond in the mountains, which was where he met Hayley.

"What if it was Klaus?" Caroline panicked. "What if Klaus made him write that letter and leave?"

"Give it a couple of weeks before you ask Klaus." Laura warned her. "We don't want to alert him to Tyler being missing, especially if Tyler is trying to break the sire-bond." She said.

"I guess." Caroline sighed.

"Let's meet up at the boarding house with your dad." Laura suggested. "See what we can learn, it will keep your mind off Tyler. Then maybe tonight we can all slumber over at mine." She suggested. "We need a night of alcohol and ice-cream."

"Deal." Caroline's voice perked up. "We could watch the Notebook." She suggested as Laura rolled her eyes, she detested that movie, but she needed to keep Caroline happy, so she agreed.

Just after lunch, Damon, Stefan, Caroline, Laura, Bonnie and Bill Forbes were all stood in the Salvatore library. As much as Bill hated vampires, he knew he needed to keep Caroline safe, as after all, she was still his daughter. And while ever Klaus and any other Original vampire was around, there was always going to be a risk of being compelled. By teaching the humans and vampires to resist compulsion, it could mitigate town disasters, because although vervain was a form of protection, once it had left the system, it was no longer effective. This was why Laura had opted to go without vervain for the last two days; her hope was that it was already out of her system.

On the other hand, Bonnie was meant to be there to keep the peace. She couldn't be compelled, but for Bill's peace of mind, she could step in if a vampire got out of hand by giving them a witchy migraine. As she briefly glanced over at her friend, she saw Bonnie looked extremely tired, as if she hadn't slept at all. She had bags under her eyes, which were bloodshot. Bonnie also looked extremely worried about something, as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. Laura wondered if Bonnie had been having more strange dreams, however, that conversation would have to wait until later.

As Laura was the only one who could be compelled, everyone else would have to watch and learn, and hope they would be able to put the techniques into action if required. However, the first thing they needed to do was to test whether the vervain had passed through Laura's system and that she could be compelled.

"So, how are we going to find out whether Elena is full of vervain or not?" Stefan asked.

"Well brother, there are only two ways. We compel her or try her blood. Although I would suggest you don't volunteer the last one as we don't want Elena to lose her head." Damon said sarcastically.

"I'll have a blood test." Laura smiled.

"I'll do…" Caroline started, as it was clear most thought she would be the one Laura would ask to test her, although Bonnie probably knew different.

"Damon." Laura smiled. "I trust you." She said as Damon nodded his head.

He walked over to Laura and pressed his body against hers, lowering his lips to her neck. For some strange reason, Laura wanted him to bite her, she wanted to know what it felt like, and maybe, in the heat of passion at some indeterminable point in the future, she might let him. However, Damon had other ideas. He ran his hand down Laura's arm and picked up her hand. Laura looked up, her heart suddenly pounding as she saw his face change.

The small veins appeared around his eyes, and the whites of his eyes had turned red, making him look truly terrifying, yet Laura wasn't scared. She knew he loved her, whatever face he wore, therefore there was no need to be scared.

Damon's eyes never left hers as he raised her hand to his mouth and pricked her finger with his tooth, before sucking the small droplet of blood which formed on her fingertip. If nobody in the room had previously known how close they were, their body language said it all. However, Laura no longer cared. In fact, she was more annoyed by the fact they weren't alone, because she wanted him to take her up to his room and make love to her. The thought of which made Laura feel a little wet, and as soon as she noticed it, so must have Damon, as she a smirk appear on his lips.

The moment was unfortunately short-lived. They weren't there to flirt, instead they were there to learn how to survive against Original vampires, which was why Damon soon dropped Laura's hand, clearly having tasted enough blood to know whether she still had vervain pumping around in her veins.

"She's clear." Damon announced to the group, before looking down at her with concern. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked. "Who knows what they'll compel you to do." He said, glancing over at Stefan and Caroline.

"I'll be fine Damon." Laura smiled. "Caroline promised nothing worse than hopping on one leg." She assured him before turning to face the rest of the group who were clearly shocked by her and Damon's blatant display of intimacy.

Shock wasn't the only thing emotion she saw. Stefan and Caroline were clearly angry with what they saw. Laura suspected Caroline's anger stemmed from how upset Stefan was. Hurt was written across his face like a billboard. Caroline had her arms folded and her cheeks were sucked in, while Bonnie, who was already aware of Laura and Damon's closeness, simply yawned. It was that moment Laura began to worry that Stefan and Caroline might not go as easy on her as Caroline had promised.

"So, do you want me to explain how I do it?" Bill asked, seemingly oblivious to what had just taken place.

"Please do." Damon nodded.

Bill acknowledged Damon's reply by explaining his method.

"I'm sure you've all been in the position where someone is talking and you are finding it difficult to listen because the room is too hot and you want to fall asleep, or the speaker is simply boring." He said.

"Like in class?" Bonnie asked.

"I should say no, but I guess that would be an obvious answer for everyone except you." He said, turning to Damon.

"Hey, I fall asleep every time I see a pharmaceutical's commercial." Damon grinned.

"The idea is to start off by avoiding full eye contact and keep your mind occupied with something else." Bill explained. "Let your mind drown out the words." He said.

"But if the vampire forces eye contact, what do you do?" Stefan asked, clearly putting his anger to one side for a moment.

"Concentrate on another part of the eye." Bill suggested. "Count eyelashes. Make sure you hear the numbers in your head, loud and clear. It takes practice, but over time it becomes automatic." He said before turning to Laura. "Elena, do you want to try it?" he asked.

"Sure." Laura nodded.

Although her instinct was to ask Damon to compel her, she knew she needed to build bridges, therefore she walked over to Caroline to try the first compulsion.

Caroline looked at Laura, eyes blazing with anger, causing Laura to worry about what she was going to ask her to do. She stared Laura in the eyes, while Laura stared at Caroline's eyelashes and began to count in her head.

"Hop on one leg." Caroline told Laura, who had inadvertently looked into Caroline's blue eyes.

Suddenly Laura began feel her head and body feel disjoined, she had no option to hop on one leg, causing a collective sigh of disappointment to echo around the room.

"Don't worry, it takes practice." Bill assured them. "Maybe we can start off a little easier." He said. "Look over Caroline's shoulder at the clock behind her and count the seconds while Caroline tries to compel you." He suggested.

Laura looked at the large clock behind Caroline and focused on it, listening to the ticking sounds instead of Caroline's words, which had turned into a blur, such was her concentration on the clock.

"Elena." Laura suddenly heard Damon's voice from behind her.

She turned to face him and looked around. "Did it work?" she asked, suddenly worried that it hadn't worked, and Caroline had compelled her to do something against her will without her knowing.

"Well, you didn't shout I want to be Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, so yeah, it worked." Bonnie smiled.

"I think the easiest way to learn is to start with the clock, then look at a different part of Caroline's face before we return back to…." Bill started, however, a loud banging noise interrupted him.

"Is somebody here?" Stefan whispered.

"Lets check it out." Damon nodded as he, Stefan and Caroline all picked up on of Ric's stakes which were on the table next to the wet bar.

"You stay here and look after Bill and Elena." Stefan told Bonnie, who nodded in agreement while the three vampires went to search the house.

Less than ten minutes later, all three had returned with a concerned look on their faces. Clearly something had happened, however, all three still had stakes and they were all blood free.

"Who was it?" Bonnie asked, her voice sounding more concerned than usual.

"Did someone break in?" Laura frowned.

Damon, Stefan and Caroline all shook their heads.

"Actually, someone broke out." Stefan said.

"Ric's gone!" Damon told them.

"Oh my god no!" Bonnie cried, holding her head in her hands.

"What Bonnie?" Laura asked.

"I think Esther might have let him out." Bonnie said.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Warning for bad language.**

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Ten minutes since hearing a loud bang, and after searching the house for the intruder, Damon, Stefan and Caroline all returned to the library, empty-handed, except for the stakes they were carrying. They all had a worried look on their faces.

"Ric's gone!" Damon told Laura, Bonnie and Bill, who had been left in the library.

"Oh my god no!" Bonnie cried, holding her head in her hands.

"What Bonnie?" Laura asked.

"I think Esther might have let him out." Bonnie said.

"Who's Esther?" Caroline asked.

"And what makes you think that Witchy?" Damon asked, ignoring Caroline.

Bonnie turned to Caroline. "Esther is Klaus's mother." She explained. "I've been having dreams about opening the coffin for a while now. I had one last night, but this morning, Abby called because she'd had the same dream, and her car had been used. It was strange because my shoes were dirty." She said.

"What happened in the dream?" Laura asked.

"I dreamed I went to the cave where Esther's coffin was kept, and Abby was there. We heard a voice telling us to open the coffin. So, we joined hands and opened it. A woman got out, calling herself Esther and thanking us for helping her. That was the last thing I remember." She said sheepishly.

"Dad." Caroline turned to Bill. "I really need you to leave town." She said.

"Mr. Forbes. Caroline is right. If Esther has been getting to Ric, you could be in danger." Laura agreed. "I think we can work out how to combat compulsion." She smiled.

"But…" Bill started.

"Daddy, please." Caroline begged.

"Esther created the Original vampires." Laura told him. "She is a threat, and we need everyone to be as safe as possible. She may have already influenced Ric. She can easily get to humans."

"What about you?" Bill asked.

"I'm a doppelganger, that gives me some security." Laura lied. "She will use you to get to Caroline."

Bill looked downcast and beaten. "Okay, I'll leave. But if you need me sweetheart…" he looked at Caroline lovingly.

"I'll know exactly where you are daddy." She smiled. "Safe." She wrapped her hands around his neck.

"I promise to improve on the compulsion technique." Laura told him. "Even if they can't practice against real compulsion, they can still learn." She nodded.

"Be sure you do." Bill told them.

"I'll give you a ride daddy." Caroline smiled as she and Bill left.

They watched as Caroline and Bill disappeared before Damon broke the silence.

"Has anyone got any idea what the fuck we are going to do?" he asked. "Clearly ripping her heart out isn't an option." He said.

Laura knew there was only one way to get rid of Esther, but she didn't want to tell Damon because she knew what would happen. She looked at Bonnie, who shifted around nervously. However, they didn't have to spend long trying to think of a solution as there was a knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Damon said leaving to answer the door.

Stefan looked at Laura. "So, you only kissed the once?" he raised an eyebrow. "Do you seriously expect me to believe that after that little performance?"

Laura glanced over at Bonnie, who had suddenly found the books in the library much more interesting than before.

"I didn't…" Laura started.

"Oh, don't give me the 'I didn't mean for it to happen' speech Elena." Stefan looked at her angrily. "The first time maybe, but you two are a lot closer than just a single kiss. There's no point in lying." He shook his head.

"I was going to say, I didn't expect things to turn out this way." Laura backtracked. "Damon and I are very close." She said.

"Have you slept with him?" Stefan asked.

Laura shook her head. "No." she said.

"Do you intend to?" Stefan probed.

"I don't know." Laura frowned. "But I don't think this is the right time or place to be having this discussion." She cocked her head towards Bonnie. "Do you?" she asked.

"I didn't know the Salvatore's kept the logging mill records." Bonnie suddenly said out of the blue, just as Damon arrived back in the room, this time accompanied by Elijah.

"Good afternoon everybody." Elijah smiled. "I came to let you know my mother has returned." He said.

"We know." Stefan said.

"Anyone care to tell me how this has happened?" Elijah asked.

Bonnie took in a deep breath. "I think she controlled my mom and me in a dream." She told him. "Last night, we both had the same dream about opening the coffin. When I woke up my shoes were dirty, and Abby's car had been moved." She told him.

"Was Ric with her?" Damon asked, as Elijah shook his head. "She came alone." He told them.

"Ric can't do anything to an Original." Stefan shrugged. "The only white oak stake was destroyed with Mikael." He said.

"Actually, that isn't entirely true." Elijah straightened his suit jacket. "Bonnie, would you care to relay our conversation regarding the white oak tree." He said as Laura looked to Bonnie confused, realizing they had been discussing potential future events behind Laura's back.

"I was helping Ric with the cave drawings." Bonnie told them. "As Ric was locked up, I needed help with some of the symbols, so I asked Elijah if he knew what they meant." She said.

"It appears a sapling grew from the original white oak tree." Elijah went on. "One of the cave drawings represented a white oak tree standing in the same place, some three hundred years after the original one burned down."

"So, are you saying there's another tree?" Stefan asked.

"Not anymore." Elijah shook his head. "I visited the site where it would have stood, and it is no longer there. It must have been cut down."

It was at that moment Laura knew why Bonnie had taken in interest in the logging mill records.

"You knew?" Laura turned her head to Bonnie and glared at her, who nodded sheepishly.

"I was going to bring it up after we'd finished with… Bill." She said.

"So, are you saying one of the trees in those books could be the key to finding a white oak stake?" Damon asked.

"That is precisely what I am saying." Elijah smiled as Bonnie stood back and closed her eyes. "What is she doing?" he asked.

"She's finding out if there is a record of it." Damon explained. "If a book shoots out across the room…" he stopped as a book flew off one of the shelves, onto the floor with the page open. Bonnie picked it up and read the page before smiling.

"Looks like we've found it." She said. "It was used to build Wickery bridge." She said.

"Does that mean we can make a stake for every bad Original?" Damon asked, his voice sounding hopeful, as Stefan glared at him.

"No." Elijah shook his head. "However, it may be useful to keep a small amount back just in case we do need a stake at some point." He told them, much to the surprise of Stefan and Damon. "You see, it is not just our mother who has returned." he told him. "She removed the daggers from the rest of my siblings. Now we are all awake. Unfortunately, it wasn't exactly an enthusiastic meeting." He suppressed a smile. "Although, she has claimed she wishes for our family to be whole again. As such, she wishes to throw a ball."

Laura closed her eyes and shook her head. Everything she'd fought to avoid had still come to pass. Ric had escaped and Esther was still planning the ball. She felt like hitting her head against a brick wall. Instead she smiled.

"Sounds wonderful." She said, as Bonnie looked at her, knowing she didn't mean a word of it.

"Do you believe her?" Stefan asked.

"Not a word." Elijah replied. "I suspect my mother is up to something. And although he may have been in a casket for the past nine hundred years, she and my older brother Finn have always been close. They share an equal distaste for our kind. I would not be surprised if together they are planning our demise as we speak." He said.

"Then they need to be stopped." Laura said. "We don't know who's line everyone is from, and I don't want you dead either." She said.

"Then you need to find out which bloodline you are from." Elijah said, looking at Damon and Stefan. "That is if you are prepared to spare the lives of myself and Rebekah if you are not of ours."

"Damon and Stefan looked at each other. "Deal." Damon agreed. "But what about Ric?" he asked.

"We need to capture and sedate him." Elijah told them. "If you can keep him locked up, then he will not be able to harm anyone. I'm sure if we put our heads together, we can find him."

"And how do we find out who's bloodline we descend from?" Stefan asked.

"Well, we know you were turned by Katerina." Elijah started. "She in turn was turned by Rose Marie. However, I do not know who turned her." He shrugged.

"Great." Damon sighed. "And she's dead, so won't be of any use to us."

Laura smiled, she knew what this meant, although events seemed to be taking place in a different order.

"I have an idea." Laura said. "We find someone who can talk to Rose." She turned to Elijah. "When is this ball taking place?" she asked.

"Next week I believe." Elijah replied.

"Good, that gives us time to find out who turned Rose." Laura grinned as Damon who nodded in understanding.

"I can probably help find Ric." Bonnie suggested.

"My mother may want to talk to you and your mother." Elijah told Bonnie. "Be careful, she is not your friend." He said.

"She was the one who unleashed the ghosts on Mystic Falls." Laura reminded her.

"I'll go with Elena to find out who we were sired by." Damon volunteered.

"Oh, I bet you can't wait." Stefan sneered. "Getting Elena all to yourself. Maybe you could compel her before she takes vervain…" he started but wasn't able to finish as Damon shot across the room and thumped him.

"How fucking dare, you suggest, I'd do anything like that." Damon hissed at Stefan.

"Well, I don't know. It seems like a bit of a coincidence that Elena has stopped taking vervain and this minor kiss you two claimed it to be, has turned into something else." Stefan turned to Laura. "How do you know he hasn't been compelling you to do things and then making you agreeable, or even forget? It wouldn't be the first time he's done it. Caroline, Andie?" he added.

Laura stormed over to Stefan and slapped him.

"How dare you!" she snapped. "What has happened to you to make you so bitter? Is it really that hard for you to believe that I could develop feelings for Damon without magical interference?" she asked.

"Yes, Elena it is." Stefan nodded. "Because I can't believe it is possible that you could be so blind that you can't see how wrong he is for you." He argued.

"No Stefan, the only time I was blind was when you fooled into thinking you were the 'good brother' by your lies." Laura stomped off. "I'm going to pack. Damon, come and pick me up as soon as you are ready." She called out to Damon as she left to go home.

When Laura got home, she searched the house for some vervain. It wasn't because Stefan had planted any seed of doubt in her mind over Damon, but alone she felt vulnerable to the influence of every other vampire. She didn't even trust Caroline, because she knew her so-called best friend would always side with Stefan. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to find any in the cupboard where it was usually kept, which made her suspect Ric had been at the house. A thought which somehow frightened her.

Just as she was about to go and pack, she heard a knock at the door. She answered it, assuming it would be Damon, however, instead Esther stood in front of her, smiling.

"I don't need to be invited in, but I would be a courtesy if you did." Esther said.

Realizing it was pointless to refuse, Laura ushered the Original witch into her house and led her to the kitchen.

"How can I help you?" Laura asked.

"What should I call you?" Esther asked. "Elena or Laura?" she smiled.

"How do you know?" Laura frowned.

"I'm a very old and powerful witch." Esther told her. "I've been on the other side for around a millennium, and I am fully aware of the Plane of Preparation." She told her. "I believe you know of the future." She smiled.

"Not anymore." Laura shook her head. "Enough changes have been made. None of the events over the past day or so took place in the show." She said, assuming Esther must know what she was talking about.

"Did I not arrange a ball?" Esther asked.

Laura looked down. "Yes." She nodded.

"Was I not freed by the Bennett witches?" Esther raised an eyebrow.

"In the show it was voluntary. This time you forced them to do it." Laura said angrily.

"Same outcome, although a different approach." Esther smiled. "You do know that every time you try to fight the fate of the life of the doppelganger, another way will be found."

"I refuse to believe that!" Laura spat.

"I suspect everything you have tried to change so far, has failed." Esther said.

Laura thought for a moment, Bill was still alive, but Esther didn't need to know that, therefore Laura decided to lie.

"Pretty much." Laura nodded. "Although things are happening in a different order. I don't seem to have any control over it." She lied.

"That is because no matter how much you try; you cannot change the future." Esther told her. "Therefore, I have a proposition for you." She smiled.

"What type of proposition." Laura asked suspiciously.

"I can send you home if you wish." Esther told her. "You will forget everything that happened and return to your old life." She said.

"I was led to believe I am Elena Gilbert, but with the benefit of experience and hindsight." Laura frowned.

"You are." Esther agreed. "The souls of the doppelgangers are raised in another body, experience a life suitable for the person they are about to become." She went on. "However, there is always the choice to return to their old lives. Most do." She told her. "They come to this world, try to make changes and fail. When given the opportunity to go back and have control over their old lives, they go willingly." She said.

"So, you were simply brought back to let me go back to my old life?" Laura raised an eyebrow as Esther nodded. "Then why was I here in the first place?" she asked.

"I believe there is a minor change." Esther said. "That is, you have admitted your feelings for one of the Salvatore brothers. Am I correct?" she asked.

"How do you know about that?" Laura frowned.

"I am a very powerful witch Laura." Esther told her. "But I'm sure you already know that." She said. "I have eyes and ears everywhere."

"You do know you won't succeed in killing Klaus." Laura warned her.

"That one change you have made, may affect that." Esther told her. "Wouldn't you like to hear the full details of my deal?" she asked.

As much as going home seemed like a tempting offer, it wasn't enough, and Laura didn't trust Esther one bit. However, she was curious to find out what kind of deal Esther would make.

"I'll bite." Laura nodded. "What do you want me to do?" she asked.

"I want to know how my plan to kill my children fails." Esther simply said.

"I thought you told me the future can't be changed." Laura frowned.

"You can't change it, but I can." Esther smiled sweetly.

"But my friends will die." Laura panicked at the thought of losing everyone she'd grown to care about. "

"I can save one of your friends and send them back with you to your world." Esther told her. "You will meet up, obviously under different circumstances and your relationship with that person will return to what it was here. I am assuming you mean Damon Salvatore." She said. "If you go back, I will send him to you, your love affair will follow the same path it would here." She smiled. "So, he wouldn't die after all. And Stefan is also a doppelganger, his soul will also be returned to the plane of preparation." She added.

"What about Caroline and Tyler?" Laura folded her arms. "And Ric?" she asked.

"I can't save everyone, but by going back, you can prevent Alaric from becoming what he is destined to become." Esther told her.

"How can I be sure I'm going to live if I go back?" a question which had been on Laura's mind for a while. "I've been told I'm in some kind of dream-state over there." She said.

"You had a migraine." Esther smiled. "You'll wake up fresh, will meet with Damon and live the life you always wanted." She assured her.

"And how do you know I'll be telling the truth?" Laura raised an eyebrow, knowing this was too easy.

"My son Finn has agreed to help with the destruction of my children." Esther told her. "Like me, he believes they are an abomination and should be destroyed." She said. "I also had a little help from your friend Alaric. He kindly removed the vervain from the house after he was released." She explained.

"Finn is going to compel me to tell the truth?" Laura asked, fear beginning to take over.

"He will then compel you to forget you told him, and forget we ever had this conversation." Esther explained.

"And when would I go back?" Laura asked.

"A week after the ball is the full moon." Esther told her. "That is the night I will send you, Damon and Stefan to the Plane of Preparation and I will kill my family." She said. "You will also die." She told her. "It is the way it has to be."

"And if I refuse?" Laura eyed Esther with suspicion, she knew a simple refusal wouldn't be enough.

"Then I won't save you or your friends when I try to kill my children." Esther told her. "I will force you to give me your blood instead of you giving it to me voluntarily, and I will turn your friend Alaric into an Original before the ball." She said. "I know there is more white oak, although I don't know where. I will find out, and when I do, I will link my children together, and then destroy them with it." She said. "You will be stuck here, and your friends will be dead." She threatened.

Laura thought about it for a moment. She only had one choice, hope that she could fight the compulsion as Bill had taught her, and lie to Finn, before pretending to forget.

"Okay." Laura agreed. "We have a deal." She said. "Where is Finn?"

"He's outside waiting for you." Esther told her. "Don't worry, we'll be gone before Damon arrives." She said as Laura made her way out onto the porch and saw Finn.

"Hello Laura." Finn smiled. "I see you have agreed to mother's term." He said.

Laura nodded. "Let's just get this over with." She sighed.

"Look at me." Finn instructed.

Laura looked at him, but deliberately lost her focus, instead, she stared at a spot on his eyelid and her sight began to blur. In her head, she began to recite the ABC song.

"Stand on one leg." Laura vaguely heard Finn tell her.

This time Laura didn't feel the pull she had before when Caroline asked her to do it. There was a slight sensation of her leg wanting to lift, however, Laura was able to resist it. Once she was convinced, she could fight the compulsion, Laura lifted her leg. Finn told her to put it down.

"I want you to tell me what went wrong when my mother tried to kill us all." Finn asked her.

"Klaus didn't drink the champagne and Ric didn't transition, he died instead." Laura lied, impressed with her ability to fight the compulsion, although it was getting harder.

"Were there any other reasons?" Finn asked.

Laura thought for a moment, deciding to lie. "Esther will be stripped of her magic by becoming a vampire after many attempts to kill you all. This will not happen for a few years." She said.

"How?" Finn asked.

Laura couldn't remember exactly what happened in the Originals as she'd only seen it once, therefore she knew she had to make it up.

"Esther brings Mikael back from the dead to help her kill her children." Laura told him. "But he reluctantly teams up with Klaus and turns her into a vampire." She said, her voice flat and monotone.

"Why" Finn asked.

"Klaus turns over a new leaf and becomes good." Laura continued to lie. "When the other side collapses, Klaus's real father, Ansel returns, however, Klaus disowns him and even though he and Mikael are enemies, he states Mikael is his real father and kills Ansel." She said. "That makes Mikael proud and he decides he has been seeking vengeance on the wrong person. It wasn't Klaus's fault Esther had an affair." She added.

"I think that's enough." Esther said. "Compel her memory away." She told him.

"You will forget you saw my mother and I, and you will forget everything you know from the future." Finn told her.

"I will forget I saw you and your mother. I will forget everything I know from the future." Laura said robotically.

"Now go inside and act as though nothing happened." Finn added.

"I will act as though nothing happened." Laura said as she walked inside and closed the door.

Once inside, she took a deep breath. She couldn't believe she'd managed to resist Finn's compulsion. However, she was still shaken by what had happened. Laura stood there for a couple of moments, before heading upstairs to pack for her trip to Denver.

Just over an hour later, Laura was almost packed when she heard a knock at the door. Terrified it might be Esther again, she decided to ask who it was before opening the door.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"It's me." Came Damon's voice from behind the door.

"Come in." Laura sighed as the door opened. "Since when did you begin to knock.

"I was being polite." Damon joked. "Are you ready?" he asked.

"Yeah, I was just looking for the vervain, but I can't find it anywhere." Laura frowned, deciding to at least let Damon know Ric had been at the house.

"Who knew where it was?" Damon asked.

"Just me and Ric." Laura cast her eyes down.

"That means he's been here." Damon looked around the kitchen suspiciously before walking over to Laura and wrapping his arms around her. "You're safe with me." He assured her. "I won't hurt you or compel you." He promised.

"I know." Laura smiled. "But hopefully, we're going to be seeing other vampires, and they might not be as friendly. They'll be older and stronger than you." She told him.

"I've got some vervain." Damon smiled as he kissed her on the forehead before pulling back and smirking. "Have you ever flown first class?" he asked.

"Who did you have to compel for that?" Laura frowned.

"Pft, please. I use miles." Damon scoffed as he took her face in his hands and gently pecked her on the lips. "Are you ready?" he asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Laura smiled as Damon picked up her luggage and carried it out of the door.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Warning for strong language and adult themes.**

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Once Damon and Laura reached Denver, they immediately headed to the family friends who had offered to look after Jeremy. As Laura didn't want Jeremy to know, or Kol to find out, she had decided to make it a surprise visit. What didn't surprise her was him being out at the batting cages, therefore, she and Damon headed there to find Jeremy. It didn't take long to spot him as he was wearing a bright red hoodie and playing very badly.

"There he is." Laura pointed out to Damon, just as Jeremy swung at the ball and missed.

"Next time we compel him, remind me to make him better at baseball." Damon frowned. As Laura walked over to the cage and stared in at her brother, or the closest she'd ever had to having a brother.

"Hey Jer!" Laura called out.

Jeremy turned around. "Elena? What's wrong?" he asked as Laura beckoned him to leave the cage.

He took his hat off and left the cage to join them to talk about speaking to Rose. They left the noise and action of the batting cages, while. Damon explained what had happened over the past few weeks.

"Mama Original is a psychotic witch who wants to kill all of her children." Damon explained. "We've discovered there is still some white oak left, which is all ready and waiting to be turned into stakes. Esther has turned Ric into some alter ego Van Helsing minion, who is ready to kill any vampires, or anyone who loves vampires." He looked at Laura. "According to Elijah, if you kill an Original, everyone from their line dies along with them. So, we need to know who we are descended from to see how we can protect them." He shuddered with distaste.

"You can talk to ghosts Jer." Laura smiled.

"Katherine sired us, Rose sired Katherine, all we need to do is find out who sired Rose." Damon shrugged.

"So, you traveled across the country to get me to talk to a dead vampire?" Jeremy asked as he put his baseball bat away.

"Dead vampire is redundant, but yes." Damon nodded.

"Well, I can't. I could talk to Anna and Vicki because I knew them. I've never even met Rose." Jeremy shook his head.

"What good is you dying and coming back to life if you can't talk to a ghost when I need you to?" Damon frowned.

"Rose spent a long time running from Klaus as. She and Damon were close, so maybe we can use him as a connection to her." Laura suggested.

"Fine, fine, but can we do this later? My friend just got here and yes, Damon, I actually have some. I'll call you when I'm done." Jeremy told them, as Laura expected Kol to appear, however, instead it was some guy Laura had never seen before, meaning Kol wasn't in Denver stalking Jeremy, which was a huge relief to Laura.

"Fine." Laura agreed. "We'll find a motel to stay for the night." She said, as Damon looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll meet you there later." Jeremy said as he kissed her goodbye.

"See you later Jer." Laura waved as he left.

"Hmm…" Damon smirked. "You, me, alone in a motel room, what could possibly go wrong?" he asked as Laura hit him on the shoulder before walking back to the car.

Once they'd found a motel, just as they were dropping their luggage off in the room, Laura's phone rang, the caller ID letting her know it was Jeremy.

"Hey Jer, that was fast." She said as she answered it.

"Yeah, we were only hanging out for dinner. Just let me know the motel and room number, and I'll be right there." He said as Laura checked the room number and told him where they were.

Half an hour later Jeremy arrived, all ready to help with the search for Rose. It hadn't been lost on Laura, that as Jeremy wouldn't be sharing a room with them that night, she and Damon wouldn't be distracted, leaving them alone to take things as far as they wanted, something which Laura was slightly excited, yet simultaneously terrified of.

"Well, this should work, right Jer?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, doesn't really matter." Jeremy shrugged as he sat down on one of the chairs next to a table.

"Alright Whoopi, what do you need?" Damon asked as he closed the curtains closed. "Candles? Incense? Pottery wheel?" he joked.

"That's not how it works." Jeremy sighed.

"I know, I know. They push from the other side and you pull from this one." Damon rolled his eyes.

"Alright, you uh- you got a picture of her?" Jeremy asked.

"Picture? What, a trip to Disneyland?" Damon frowned. "Come on Rose, you're not gonna actually make us wait, are you? I know you're obsessed with me." He teased as Laura scoffed and rolled her eyes, before sitting down next to Jeremy.

"All right, uh- tell me something about her." Jeremy suggested as Damon sat down on the end of one of the beds.

"Um, well she does this little thing with her tongue." Damon grinned, annoying Laura even further.

"Something that matters, Damon." Laura sighed.

Damon sighed and thought for a minute to come up with something more meaningful. "She spent her last day in paradise. Soaking in the sun and reminiscing about what it means to be human. And when death came, she didn't fear it." He said sadly.

"I was with her on her last day and she looked more like she was in hell than in paradise." Laura raised an eyebrow, remembering how awful Rose looked before she died.

"It was in the dream he gave her. She's here." Jeremy said, suddenly surprised by what Laura knew to be the appearance of Rose.

Damon looked around, but like Laura, he couldn't see her. However, Laura knew Rose was sitting on the bed next to him.

"Is she lonely on the other side?" Laura asked Jeremy.

Jeremy was quiet for a moment while Rose answered, before relaying over the message. "She says not to worry, she's happy." He told her.

"Is she still hot?" Damon asked,

Jeremy looked uncomfortably at the spot where Laura knew Rose was sat, before giving a completely different answer. "She misses you." He said, as judging from the expression on Jeremy's face, Laura knew Rose was spilling the beans on her and Damon. "She uh- she misses both of you." He said uncomfortably.

His expression changed as it Rose must have been telling him about Mary. "She was sired by someone named Mary Porter." Jeremy told them.

"Uh, Scary Mary. Well, where is she, Rose?" Damon rolled his eyes.

"She doesn't know where Mary is, but she'll try to find her and come back to us when she does." Jeremy said.

"So, we wait here until she comes back." Damon shrugged. "I'm just going go down and get something to drink, if you don't mind keeping your sister company for a few minutes." He suggested.

"Sure." Jeremy agreed as Damon left the room.

As Laura began to unpack, she told Jeremy about the rest of the goings on in Mystic Falls since he'd left. He was very interested in the compulsion-fighting technique, however, Laura explained she had still to perfect it before she was prepared to show him. She did everything to avoid the subject she knew Jeremy would raise, but she couldn't avoid it forever.

Jeremy: So, what's up with you and Damon?

Laura: What do you mean? Nothing's up.

Jeremy: Are you sure about that? Cause even Rose said something.

Laura: What did she say?

[Damon enters the room.]

Damon: Everything okay in here?

Laura: Yeah. It's fine.

Damon: Okay, well, I'm gonna freshen up. You might want to get some rest. I'm sure Rose will make herself known when she gets back.

Jeremy got up and kissed Laura on the cheek. "I'll call you as soon as I speak to Rose." He said as Laura smiled.

"See you soon." Laura said.

"Bye." Jeremy replied as he left the room.

Laura changed into her pajama's and got into bed. She hoped Damon would join her, but at the same time, he might not want to move things too fast. Laura was already lying to Jeremy about her relationship with Damon, and she wasn't sure whether Damon had overheard their conversation, where she'd practically shrugged off any notion of them being in any kind of relationship.

The problem Laura had was that she might be going home soon. She didn't know whether Esther had been lying or not, but she had made a deal with the Original witch. The problem was, she didn't know what Esther's new plan was, and Laura had absolutely no control over it. Therefore, she had to assume she was going to go home a week after the night of the ball. Whatever, happened, she had to comply with Esther's demands, and hope she'd get to see Damon in the Plane of Preparation. However, this did not make her feel any less guilty about her involvement with Esther, even if it had been forced upon her. This was why, although she would desperately have wanted to spend every possible moment making love to Damon, her guilt was lying too heavily upon her shoulders, and Damon seemed to know something was wrong.

Laura got into bed and settled down to try and sleep. She knew Rose would soon make an appearance to Jeremy, therefore, she needed to get some sleep.

The idea of sleep went straight out of the window when only a few moments later, Damon walked out of the bathroom wearing just a pair of low-slung jeans, revealing everything, including his treasure trail. The light was poor, but there was enough shining through the window to highlight every ripple of muscle on his chest. The extreme neon lighting also seemed to highlight the contrast in Damon's pallid skin and raven hair.

Laura had seen the motel scene on TV, but she had never truly appreciated Damon's beauty, but now that she knew how sexy he was, her eyes had opened to his beauty and she couldn't take her eyes off of him. She watched on as Damon walked over to the nightstand next to her and picked up the whiskey bottle which was beside the ice bucket. Laura pretended to be asleep, because even though they had been getting physically closer, she didn't want to be caught staring.

When heard Damon's footsteps move away, she watched him walk over to the window and look out, before putting a shirt on, much to Laura's annoyance. Damon poured himself a drink and sits down with a quiet sigh, his mind seemingly distracted. Laura knew she'd been slightly off with him since they set off from her house, her head trying to absorb the implications of her conversation with Esther. She couldn't talk it over with Damon, so she would need to wait until she got home to speak to either Bonnie or Elijah to offset the implications. She wondered if it were her aloofness or the prospect of finding out who sired them, which was bothering him.

Damon drained the glass of whiskey and looked over at Laura. She quickly closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, however, she knew Damon wasn't fooled, as she could tell Damon was still watching her. Laura opened her eyes again, and they stared at each other for a moment, before Damon got up, walked over to the bed, and lay down next to her.

"You never told me about that. What you did for Rose." Laura said quietly.

"It wasn't about you." Damon stared up at the ceiling, apparently lost in thought.

"Why don't you let people see the good in you?" Laura asked.

"Because when people see good, they expect good. Damon turned his head and looked at Laura. "And I don't want to have to live up to anyone's expectations." He said.

Damon looked other-worldly in that moment. His raven hair, set against the paleness of his skin with his piercing blue eyes staring right at her, seemed to affect her even more. The weight of guilt pressed down on her even more as she wondered if she had condemned him to an early death. Yet here, he was looking at her with such devotion, and a hint of confusion, her heart was torn in two.

As her heart raced faster, Laura turned on her back to break his intense gaze. She couldn't look at Damon for a moment longer, he was affecting her too much. And although she knew what to expect, she couldn't stop her from following Elena's movements in the show, as such, she dropped her arm by her side. Slowly, Damon gently edged his hand towards her, before taking her fingers in his and caresses them. Laura's heart raced even faster, to the point of her wondering if she were going to suffer a panic attack. She took in deep breathes to calm herself, but the room was stifling, and she needed to get away. Laura quickly got out of bed, slipped on her shoes, grabbed her coat and walked out of the room and into the hallway. The cold air hit her as soon as she stepped outside, so she put on her coat and headed straight for the ice machine in front of her. She knew what was coming, which in its own was making her even more nervous. Although Laura had kissed Damon before, she knew this was an iconic scene, yet all she felt in that moment was nervousness and guilt. As a result, tears began to well up in her eyes as she heard the motel room door close, followed by Damon's footsteps, telling her he had come after her.

"Don't." Laura shook her head.

"Why not? Elena..." Damon asked.

Laura took a deep breath and wiped away her tears, there was no point in resisting Damon, she was weak when it came to him. There was an invisible force which seemed to draw her in whenever he was around, leaving her vulnerable and out of control. Damon didn't need compulsion with Laura, he just needed to be near her. Laura decided that there was nothing she could do about the situation right now. Telling Elijah would be the only thing she could do, and hopefully he would have an idea of how to resolve it. Killing Damon and Stefan for her to get home was not an option.

Once that decision was made and her conscience was a little clearer, instinct took over. Laura spun around and ran towards Damon, her hands grasping his neck, determined to never let go. Damon wrapped his arms around her waist, pulled her in tight and their lips met. This time there was not only a passion, but a desperation about the kiss. They needed each other, like they needed the air to breathe.

Their tongues played, toyed and teased; all the while exploring as if they'd never kissed before. Damon pushed Laura up against a pillar. Laura's hands roamed under Damon's shirt, allowing her to touch his naked skin, the contact seemingly playing havoc with her hormones. All the while Damon kissed her on the neck before making his way down to her chest, however, Laura lifted his head back up to her lips. They look at each other for a moment.

"Not out here." Laura whispered. "Let's take this inside." She said, realizing they wouldn't be interrupted.

Damon nodded in agreement and picked Laura up. She wrapped her arms around his neck and legs around his waist as he vamp-sped them back to their room. He closed the door and sat down on the bed, leaving Laura straddling his lap. Damon pushed her coat off as she kicked off her shoes. He lifted her tank top over her head, revealing her black lacy bra. Not to be outdone, Laura frantically pushed Damon's shirt over his shoulders, leaving the top half of his body naked.

They began to kiss once more, this time, as they became more and more turned on, the kisses turned more needy and intense. Laura thought her head was going to explode with desire. She had never experienced anything like this in her life. Damon's hands seemed to be everywhere, touching the exact parts of her skin which would affect her, sending signals straight to her groin, telling her how desperate she was for him.

Laura pushed Damon backwards, so that he was lying on the bed, while she still straddled him. She could feel him hardening beneath her, which coincided with her feeling turned on and wet for him. Her hair curtained them as they kissed, while Damon unclipped her bra. He then flipped them over, so that he was on top, and she was lying fully on the bed. His hips were pressed against hers, although not enough for her liking, so she raised her leg and wrapped it around Damon's back.

Damon's lips made their way, once again, down to Laura's neck. She fought to shudder at the thought of him biting her, but she put that notion to one side as she knew Damon wouldn't want to drink her blood because he didn't see her that way. His mouth made its way to her breasts as he rolled his tongue around her nipple, before gently sucking on it.

Laura's back arched with pleasure. She'd never experienced such an expert in knowing exactly what buttons to press and how much pressure to apply to achieve erotic sensory perfection. She moaned with pleasure but needed another outlet for expressing her need for him. She grabbed Damon's other hand and began to suck hard on his first two fingers. Damon raised his eyes in surprise at her forwardness. He looked stunning, his lips parted and eyes dark with desire. Damon was the devil himself; a dangerous, ruthless killer, yet with her, he was gentle, soft and as dangerous as a cuddly toy.

Damon lowered his head to Laura's other breast. He removed his fingers from Laura's mouth and stroked his hand up the inside of her pajama-clad leg, almost sending her into orbit. Laura widened her legs to give him greater access, however, it was at that moment Laura's cell started to ring. Damon groaned and dropped his head onto Laura's stomach.

"Ignore it." He said in a muffled voice.

"Its probably Jeremy." Laura sighed as she reached over to the nightstand and picked up her phone, the caller I'd confirming her suspicion. "It's Jeremy." She told Damon as she answered the phone.

"Elena?" Jeremy said.

"Hey Jer." Laura replied breathlessly as Damon began to kiss her stomach, distracting her while she spoke.

"Rose found Mary. She lives in Kansas." Jeremy told her. "Are you okay?" he asked, clearly noticing something odd about her voice.

"Yeah, um… you woke me up." Laura lied as Damon lowered the zipper on her pajama pants and began to kiss the skin underneath, causing her eyes to roll back into her head and struggle to concentrate on what Jeremy was telling her.

"Oh sorry." Jeremy apologized as Laura playfully slapped Damon on the shoulder and shaking her head, a part of her hoping he would stop, the other part wishing he wouldn't.

"Text me the address." Laura swallowed as Damon blatantly ignored her not very subtle hints and pulled her pants down slightly, revealing her hipbone, where he started to suck the skin.

"Okay." Jeremy promised.

"Love you." Laura nearly squealed as Damon once more ran his hand up the inside of her thigh, except this time he stroked the juncture between her legs.

"Love you too Lena." Jeremy replied before hanging up.

As soon as the call ended, Damon rested his chin on Laura's stomach and looked up at her, his eyes filled with a cross between lust and disappointment.

"Damon!" Laura admonished, before laughing as a pout appeared on his face.

"Well Toto, it looks like we're off to Kansas." Damon sighed.

Damon packed their things into the truck while Laura put the location into the satnav, it was going to be a long drive, she just hoped it wouldn't be too awkward after their intimate moment where they'd almost had sex. However, this turned out to not be an issue as Laura fell asleep almost immediately, dreaming about Damon's hands roaming her body.

"Wake up." Laura heard Damon's voice as she felt him shaking her.

"Huh?" Laura frowned as she opened her eyes.

"We're here." Damon told her.

"Have I slept the entire way here?" Laura asked.

"Pretty much." Damon nodded.

"I'm sorry." Laura sat up and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Its okay." Damon smiled. "You're cute when you're sleeping." He told her. "Plus, you moaned my name a couple of times, and I don't think you were complaining." He smirked.

"You weren't in my head, were you?" Laura frowned.

"No, I'd never do that." Damon looked at her, seemingly shocked that he'd even suggest that.

Laura thought for a moment. He was right, he'd never mess with her mind or compel her. She frowned, somewhere deep down, she had a feeling he had compelled her at some point in the past, although whatever it was, he must have compelled her to forget, because whatever it was, she couldn't remember. Realizing it must be her imagination, not only did she dismiss the thought that Damon had ever compelled her, the notion completely disappeared from her mind entirely.

They got out of the car and stared up at the spooky looking house. it was still dark, but it was clear to see the house wasn't exactly in the best condition.

Laura looked at her phone to check the details Jeremy had sent her, in the hope that this wasn't the right house, but she was disappointed to discover it was.

"This is the address." Laura

"Looks about right." Damon nodded. "Come on." He beckoned towards Laura as they walked straight into the house without knocking. As there were no lights on, Laura turned on a torch, revealing a room full of books on the floor and other junk piled high.

"Oof, Vampire Hoarders." Damon sighed.

"Who is this Mary person?" Laura asked.

"Scary Mary. She's really old, super creepy." Damon whispered.

"And how do you know her?" Laura frowned.

"I dated her." Damon shrugged.

"Of course." Laura rolled her eyes.

"What? I said creepy, not ugly." Damon said. "Mary." He called out as Laura saw a light on in a room at the far end of the hallway.

They walked up to the door, which Damon pushed aside. Laura vaguely remembered this scene from the show, where Mary was staked up against the wall and Kol was sat at the desk. However, instead she saw a pretty looking, young woman with long blonde hair and bright blue eyes, sat reading at the desk. She looked up at them as they walked in.

"Damon." She smiled. "What a pleasant surprise." She turned to Elena and her smile dropped. "Katherine." She hissed, getting up.

"I'm not Katherine." Laura protested.

"Yeah, right." Mary said, making her way towards Laura in a predatory fashion.

"My name is Elena. I'm Katherine's doppelganger." Laura pleaded.

"She's not Katherine." Damon insisted, as he stood protectively in front of Laura. "I can prove it, she's human." He said.

Mary's face softened as she walked over to Laura and sniffed, before raising an eyebrow and shrugging.

"Is she here as dinner?" Mary smirked.

"She's with _me_!" Damon said in such a manner that it would be impossible to not understand what he was implying.

"Ooh, a threesome with a human who looks like Katherine." Mary's eyes lit up. "Kinky!" She grinned.

"No Mary." Damon shook his head. "We don't share." He warned.

"Well that's new." Mary raised an eyebrow, before turning to Laura. "He never had a problem keeping four of us girls happy at the same time." She said suggestively. "But I was quite willing to share as I always got priority." She added.

"Elena gets my undivided attention." Damon looked at Mary darkly.

"Well then Damon, if you're not here for a good fuck, then why are you here." Mary asked.

"I need some information. About who turned you." Damon told her.

"And why would I tell you that?" Mary frowned.

"Because I was turned by Katherine, who was turned by Rose, who was turned by you." Damon explained. "It turns out that if an Original vampire dies, then their entire line dies with them. So, I need to know which Original vampire needs to be kept alive, so I don't have to die." He told her.

"Okay." Mary nodded. "I was turned by Klaus." She told him. "He's the one you need to keep alive." She said.

"Fuck!" Damon swore as he rolled his eyes.

"Is there anything else you need to know?" Mary asked.

"No!" Laura shook her head. "Thank you, Mary." She smiled. "We ought to get going, right Damon?" she asked as she started to walk out of the door.

"Thanks Mary." Damon nodded. "I'll see you around." He added, following Laura.

"Goodbye Damon." Mary smiled as they walked down the porch steps and back to the car. "Oh, and Elena…" Mary called out as Laura turned around to look at her. "You'll never keep him. Damon is a wild animal. He can be tamed a little, but he never be domesticated. He'll come back to me one day because you won't be able to satisfy him. He knows he'll get a better fuck out of me than any human is capable of." She called out, with a smug expression on her face.

Jealousy welled up inside Laura. She had no idea why, but the thought of Damon leaving her and spending any time with Mary made her feel sick. She stormed off to the car, climbed in the passenger seat and slammed the door shut.

Damon got in the car after her and looked at her with concern, clearly aware that Mary had upset her. He reached out and stroked Laura's face, but the thought of him with four women at the same time had upset her so much, she flinched.

"Ignore her." Damon said softly. "She's just jealous." He said, his voice sounding upset by Laura's actions.

"I know." Laura sighed. "It's just hard hearing about your past, and history with other women." She cast her eyes down.

"Look at me." Damon insisted as Laura turned to face him. "Think of it as me perfecting my skills until you came along. You are the only woman I want to be with." He smiled.

"But she said I'd never be capable of satisfying you." Laura cast her eyes down.

"All Mary knows about is sex. She's never been in love before." He told her. "I could have sex with ten women at the same time, and still not be satisfied, because there would still be a hole which is missing. It is that part which it the most important piece. With you, there is no missing piece. I get more pleasure just kissing you than having sex with four women at the same time." He assured her. "And, it was thirty years ago." He added, stroking her face once more.

This time Laura didn't flinch. Instead she smiled before leaning over and giving him a gentle kiss on the lips.

"I know." She nodded. "Let's go home." She said as Damon started up the car and began to drive.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Thank you all for your kind reviews. They are always appreciated.**

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

Laura had been back in Mystic Falls after her trip with Damon, for three days. The Mikaelson ball was at the weekend, yet she'd had received no formal invitation yet. Also, she hadn't seen much of Damon since their trip. Caroline had been trying to help her and Stefan patch things up, something Laura wasn't overly keen to do, but Caroline was far more persistent than Laura remembered.

The other issue Laura was having, and why she wanted to stay away from Damon for a few days was her memory. She was still unsure as to whether he had compelled her in the past, but if he had, she couldn't remember what it was, and that was beginning to scare her, because it wasn't her only memory issue. Whenever she tried to picture the faces of people from her old life, they seemed to merge with the people in Mystic Falls. For instance, the face of her first boyfriend, who was called either Mark or Matt, seemed to have been replaced by that of Matt Donovan. Whenever she tried to remember events from school with her two best friends, she only saw the faces of Bonnie and Caroline. The most disturbing of all was that she couldn't remember her mother's face. Instead, she only seemed to remember Miranda Gilbert.

The future was also becoming a little hazy. She remembered what would happen in the show if she didn't make changes, however, the problem was that she had made changes, and many of the future events would happen in a different order, which now prevented her from having full control over matters, a thought which scared her.

Finally, Laura was feeling guilty for what she told Esther. They were lies, but she wasn't sure how Esther would work around them. She no longer knew Esther's plan, and as such, she couldn't do much to stop it. Alaric was still missing, meaning he was tied up with Esther somewhere and up to something, although she didn't know what. Telling Esther that Klaus didn't drink the champagne was the only idea she could come up with on the spot, but with hindsight, she realized Esther would now try a different approach. This meant there was a much greater chance of Esther succeeding in her plans than before. This could potentially render all of the Originals dead, all of her vampire friends and possibly even her, as Esther had mentioned something about her dying. The part about herself dying wasn't a great concern, as Laura suspected that might actually be her route home. If Esther was to keep her part of the bargain and send Laura home, then death would be the logical price. However, the problem with her memory, was making her question whether she even wanted to go back. When she made the deal, she could remember what her mom and friends looked like, but now, they were a blur. She could only remember her father because she had seen him as a ghost only a couple of weeks earlier, otherwise, she suspected his face would have been replace with that of Grayson Gilbert.

Laura had tried to get hold of Bonnie, but her friend was staying at Abby's, trying out some spells, as it appeared the appearance of Bonnie had switched Abby's powers back on. The only other person she could confide in was Elijah, which was why she was currently stood in the cemetery, outside the Salvatore crypt, waiting for him. Suddenly, from out of the corner of her eye, she saw him approaching. He wore a long, dark overcoat to keep out the cold, even though he didn't feel it, and Laura could tell he was wearing a suit underneath. As usual, Elijah was impeccably dressed.

"The lovely Elena." Elijah smiled, not calling her Laura, just in case anyone saw, or heard them talking.

"Elijah." Laura smiled as he stood opposite her.

"How can I help?" Elijah asked as Laura beckoned him to the nearby bench, so they could sit down and speak.

"Your mother and Finn came to visit the night I went to Denver." Laura told him.

"What did they want" Elijah frowned.

"Esther knows about the Plane of Preparation." Laura said, as Elijah shook his head in despair. "She wanted to know what was going to happen in the future. She offered me a deal." She admitted.

"What kind of deal?" Elijah raised an eyebrow.

"Esther told me, that no matter what I do here, it won't change anything." Laura explained. "She said nature would find a way to achieve the same result. And my being here was pointless, unless I wanted to live out the life of the doppelganger." She told him. "She said she could send me home if I told her what happened in the future."

"And did you agree?" Elijah asked.

Laura nodded sheepishly. "But I lied. I told her Klaus didn't drink the champagne, which wasn't true." She said quickly.

"And my mother actually believed you?" he asked.

"She asked Finn to compel me." Laura told him. "I wasn't wearing vervain, and I didn't have any vervain inside me, so I lied under compulsion." She grinned.

"How?" Elijah looked confused.

"Bill Forbes showed me how to resist compulsion." Laura told him. "I managed to lie to Finn, so I assume your mother thinks I know nothing of our conversation."

"Good." Elijah nodded. "Useful to know you cannot be compelled, it may come in useful." He smiled.

"So, what do you suggest?" Laura asked.

"Continue to do as my mother asked, and then follow the show as you remember." Elijah said.

Laura cast her eyes down. "That's a bit of a problem." She told him.

"Are your memories changing already?" Elijah asked.

"How do you know about that?" Laura frowned.

"Remember how I said it was believed doppelgangers were psychic?" he asked as Laura nodded. "Those abilities rarely last. Slowly, they merge into the other person. They lose their memories of their previous life, and eventually, once all danger has passed, they complete the transformation." He told her.

"That would explain why Katherine can't remember the Plane of Preparation." Laura mused as Elijah nodded. "Do they ever go back?" she asked.

"I suppose some might." Elijah shrugged. "But it seems a little doubtful to me."

"Why?" Laura sighed.

"I believe it is related to how much the future of the doppelganger's life changes as a result of the experienced soul who has hindsight." Elijah suggested. "The more changes are made, the more the soul forgets their previous life, until they are truly a part of this world and would find it impossible to return." He said.

"Your mother offered to send me back." Laura looked confused. "She said my changes wouldn't be permanent."

"That is incorrect." Elijah said. "I have personally witnessed changes made, which proved permanent." He assured her.

"Esther told me I would die to go back." Laura told him. "She said when you died, she could send Stefan to the Plane of Preparation because he was a doppelganger, and she would send Damon to me too."

"Impossible." Elijah shook his head. "Stefan Salvatore was only seventeen when he turned." He went on. "His soul died in the Plane of Preparation in eighteen sixty-four."

"So, who is in Stefan's body?" Laura frowned.

"The host soul." Elijah explained. "While the doppelganger is young, their bodies are inhabited by a host soul. These are designed to take a doppelganger through childhood and puberty. When the merge happens, they are reborn into another doppelganger. They never age beyond eighteen, unless a doppelganger becomes a vampire before the age of eighteen." He said. "The soul ensures they doppelganger does not die young, as that soul cannot die until it is eighteen."

"But Stefan died." Laura narrowed her eyes with confusion.

"Stefan is one of a kind." Elijah told her. "He clearly wasn't dead long enough for his soul to leave his body." He shrugged.

"Well that explains my predicament." Laura sighed. "The more I change things, the more real this world becomes." She said.

"That is because Laura Jennings has put her stamp on future events." Elijah smiled. "But soon, the name Laura Jennings will mean nothing to you."

"Maybe I ought to write down what I do remember in a journal." Laura laughed. "Be the epitome of the Vampire Diaries, except maybe change it to the Doppelganger Diaries."

Elijah laughed. "It would prove useful, just in case you forget anything else." He agreed.

"Thank you, Elijah." Laura smiled. "You've made me feel a lot better about the situation." She said. "I just don't know what to do." She frowned.

"Try and continue as the show did." Elijah told her. "That way, you will retain as much knowledge as is now possible." He said.

"And if I want to go home?" Laura asked.

"There will come a time when the opportunity presents itself; only then must you choose whether or not to take it." Elijah said. "Do not let my mother suggest otherwise. Also, when you do see her, pretend you have never met her before. If she thinks you are compelled, it needs to stay that way." He said.

"I know." Laura nodded. "What about the white oak?" she asked.

"I am going to strip it off and destroy most of it." Elijah told her. "I will retain some for safe keeping." He said.

"You need to know that Matt kills Finn with a white oak stake." Laura advised him.

"Then I shall let your friends have a stake when the time is right to use it." He agreed.

"Are you not sad about losing your brother?" Laura frowned.

"If it were any of my other siblings, then yes, I would be distraught." Elijah sighed. "But Finn has not been a part of our family for nine hundred years. All he has ever done is seek to destroy us. I do not recognize him as my brother. I believe the old adage 'kill or be killed' applies." He smiled.

"What about Bonnie's mom?" Laura frowned. "She becomes a vampire in the show." She said.

"I have already spoken to Ms. Wilson in private regarding the matter. She is aware of what must be done if it is necessary." He said.

"And what about me becoming a vampire?" Laura asked.

"Let us tackle the issue with my mother first." Elijah shook his head.

"That's the problem." Laura told him. "She plans to kill me at the same time as killing you."

"Which suggests you must be some kind of sacrifice." Elijah frowned. "What spell did she use before?" he asked.

Laura had to think for a moment to recollect the nature of the spell.

"She drew a tree on a piece of paper and wrote all of your names at the end of a branch." She said. "She poured some of Finn's blood onto the paper, which set on fire. It's all I can remember. I just know it is a linking spell." She said.

"That is enough." Elijah told her. "I have witches who may be able to work out the spell in question. And she used the essence of your blood in the champagne as the binding ingredient."

"She takes a pinprick of my blood and puts it into a cup, which is placed into the champagne." Laura said.

"My mother has told the family she has forgiven Klaus and is holding the ball as a celebration in honor of our family becoming whole once more." Elijah told her. "As a result, she thinks you are under compulsion, therefore not only do you have to act as if you know nothing of the future, I also must act as though we have never had any conversation regarding your knowledge." He said.

"You were distrustful of her in the show." Laura told him. "You questioned Elena as to whether she had forgiven Klaus, and Elena lied."

Elijah thought for a moment. "Then I shall play the part my mother would expect. If I weren't suspicious, it would arouse her suspicions." He smiled. "Well I should get going." He told her. "I need to make plans for the ball." He smiled. "Thank you for our conversation, it has been very informative. And for the record, I will ensure no harm comes to you, unless you wish it to." He assured her.

"Just because I don't mind being a vampire, I'm not going to go out of my way to make it happen. I'll let nature and fate take its course." Laura told him.

"I think that is wise." Elijah smiled, as he stood up as did Laura. "Goodbye Elena. I look forward to seeing you at the weekend." He said.

"Goodbye Elijah, I will see you at the ball." Laura smiled as Elijah walked off into the distance.

On the morning of the ball, Stefan and Damon decided to pay Laura a visit. Elijah had been to see them after his meeting with Laura to discuss the matter of the white oak, which was underneath the, currently being renovated, Wickery Bridge. Or to be more precise, the wood, which was no longer lying under Wickery Bridge, as Elijah had stripped it the previous night.

"Did you know that Elijah has taken up a new hobby?" Damon told her. "Bridge renovation, on steroids." He said. "He stripped Wickery Bridge of the white oak last night."

"What did he do with the wood?" Laura asked.

"He gave some to us." Stefan told her. "Apparently he wants to make sure were armed with stakes." He said.

"But we can't kill Klaus." Laura frowned. "So, what's the point? We don't want to kill Elijah or Rebekah. We don't know the other brothers, so we can't say for sure about those two. And the stake won't kill their mom."

"It's to do with one of the other brothers." Stefan told her.

"Elijah, for some reason, seems to value your life more than that of his brother Finn." Damon said.

"Why?" Laura asked.

"Apparently, Finn is very anti-vampire." Stefan said. "He only created one vampire, and she was his girlfriend."

"Elijah said he's a mommy's boy, who wants to destroy all vampires." Damon said in a silly voice with a pouty face.

"So, are we on a mission to save the Originals?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Sort of." Damon winced. "We're saving ourselves. Once we've dealt with Mama Original, we can find and help Ric, then we can desiccate Klaus. We win!" he grinned.

"And what has Elijah said about desiccating Klaus?" Laura folded her arms.

"He's on board with the idea." Stefan nodded. "He thinks it might teach Klaus a lesson to know what it is like being locked away in a coffin for a hundred years or so. He does it to his siblings often enough, they're itching for revenge."

"Fine, whatever." Laura agreed, when suddenly there was a knock at the door.

Laura went to answer it, but there was nobody in sight. However, on the doormat, lay an envelope with an ornately handwritten 'Elena Gilbert' on the front. Laura picked it up, closed the door, and turned around.

"What is it?" Damon asked as Laura opened the envelope and removed the card inside.

"It's an invitation. "Please join the Mikaelson Family, this evening at seven o'clock. For dancing, cocktails and celebration."" Laura read the invite out loud.

"Who the hell are the Mikaelson's?" Stefan frowned.

"The Original Family." Laura replied.

"Oh, that ball, I thought it must have been called off." Damon frowned. "It's not bad enough they're moving into town, now they want a housewarming gift?" he complained.

Laura turned the card over to find there was writing on the back.

"Wait, there's a note on the back. 'Elena, I think it's time that we finally meet, Esther.'" Laura told them. "If Esther wants to talk to me, maybe I should find out why."

"Well that's a dumb idea, she already tried to kill you once." Damon shook his head.

"No, Elena is right. Bonnie was forced into opening that coffin for a reason. I think there is more to this than just some family reunion." Stefan said.

"Can we go back in time where the old Stefan cared if Elena lived or died?" Damon looked at Stefan with confusion on his face.

"What for? It's your job now." Stefan smirked.

"Stefan has a point, Damon. I ought to find out what she wants." Laura said. "If she wants her family dead, it directly affects you guys. I could find out what she has planned."

"You can't protect yourself." Damon refused.

"Okay fine, then I'll go." Stefan shrugged.

"You've pissed off enough Originals to last a lifetime. I'll go." Damon argued as he snatched the invitation out of Laura's hand.

"Hey!" Laura protested.

"End of story." Damon looked at her like a father scolding a child.

Later that day, she arranged to meet Caroline at the Grill. Although she had spent time with Caroline, she hadn't confessed to the motel kiss. In fact, she'd neglected to mention any kiss with Damon, whatsoever. Instead she'd talked it over with Bonnie, because Caroline had taken her pro-Stefan stance, trying to get play cupid, and Laura was getting fed up with Caroline's obsession with Laura and Stefan being a couple. Two months earlier, Laura would have agreed with Caroline on this matter, but after getting to know the brothers, her opinion was now dramatically different.

"It's all so weird. The Originals are throwing a ball. Like an actual ball from a fairy tale or something." Laura said as they waited for their food.

"It's some twisted Cinderella fetish is what it is. And why does the Evil Witch want an audience with you?" Caroline said quietly.

"I have no idea. There's only one way to find out." Laura smirked, deciding Caroline was going to have too much on her plate that day to tell the Salvatore's.

"I thought you told Damon and Stefan that you weren't going." Caroline raised an eyebrow.

"I did, which is all the more reason why I need a drama free bodyguard." Laura nodded.

"Well, I think a Salvatore would look a lot better in a tux. And by that; I mean Stefan." Caroline clarified.

"Uhh! I can't deal with either of the Salvatore's right now" Laura shook her head." Whatever Stefan is feeling, he is channeling it all against Klaus. And Damon...it's just not a good idea."

"Why, cause you two made out? Multiple times? To the point where you would have ended up having sex in a skeevy motel room with him if Jeremy hadn't have interrupted? Yeah, Bonnie spilled the beans." Caroline raised an eyebrow.

"I was gonna tell you. But…" Laura started.

"Elena, when you and Matt kissed for the first-time freshman year, you called me the second it happened. And now I don't hear about this till now, and from somebody else." Caroline folded her arms.

"I'm sorry. It's just I, I don't even know how I feel about it yet." Laura protested.

"Damon only wants you for sex." Caroline shook her head. "Don't waste your time. At least you know where you stand with Stefan, when he's not on some revenge-mission against Klaus." She added. "When this is all over, he'll go back to being the sweet, kind Stefan you fell in love with. How could you waste that chance of happiness for one night with Damon? Ughh!" she shuddered.

"Careful Caroline. It's all well and good until she stabs you in the back." Came Rebekah's voice behind, before appearing in front of them.

"What are you doing here? I thought you weren't allowed to hurt the locals." Laura said.

"Get over yourself Elena. It's not all about you." Rebekah smirked before walking away and over to Matt, where she gave him an invitation envelope to the ball.

"Oh my god. She's inviting him to the ball. Why is she inviting him?" Caroline panicked.

"Probably to get this reaction from us." Laura sighed.

"What time is this stupid dance?" Caroline scoffed.

"You decided to go now?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Well I don't have anything else planned." Caroline shook her head.

Later that evening, Laura walked into the Mikaelson mansion, wearing her gold and chocolate ball gown. As she looked around, she noticed Damon standing there, looking absolutely stunning, wearing a tux, staring back at her, equally impressed. His mouth was open with shock and delight at her appearance. The coat check removed Laura's shawl for her and took it away, as Stefan and Damon walk over towards her.

"What are you doing here?" Laura asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." Stefan raised an eyebrow.

"Surprise, surprise. Nice tux." Damon said to Stefan before turning to Laura. "You're not supposed to be here."

"Well, I am. And I'm not leaving until I find out what Esther wants. So, shall we?" Laura said under her breath.

Damon looked as if he was about to argue with Laura, but Stefan offered Laura his arm and she wrapped hers in it. She looked at Damon, and not one for being outdone by his little brother, he did the same. Laura smiled as she takes Damon's arm in hers, and both of the Salvatore's escorted her into the party.

Once inside, Stefan and Damon left Laura while they got drinks from the bar. The queue was fairly long, and due to the number of vampires and hybrids, Stefan and Damon had no hope of compelling their way to get served faster. As she waited alone, Finn joined her.

"Elena Gilbert, I presume?" Finn asked. "I'm Finn Mikaelson. You're here to see my mother." He introduced himself as he passed her a glass of champagne.

"Is she here?" Laura asked.

"Her request did not include your friends." Finn said quietly as he looked over at Stefan and Damon.

"They're protecting me. You may not know but your mother has already tried to kill me once." Laura said quietly.

"If you want to see my mother, you'll need to be alone." Finn warned her.

"I know." Laura nodded as there was a whistle of a microphone.

"Uh, if everyone could gather, please." Laura heard Elijah's voice through a loudspeaker.

"Excuse me." Finn said as he left Laura to join his family, who were all standing on the staircase, while Elijah addressed the crowd. "Welcome, thank you for joining us. You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition for us to commence the evening with a dance." he said to the crowded room as at the top, Laura noticed Esther make a short appearance with her family.

"Tonight's pick is a centuries-old waltz, so if all of you could please find yourselves a partner, please join us in the ballroom." Elijah announced, as Esther retreated silently back upstairs. Laura moved to follow her, but Damon blocked her way.

"Don't even think about it." Damon warned.

"She wants to see me alone, Damon." Laura hissed.

"Well sucks to be her then. Was I not clear this morning?" Damon growled.

"I was invited." Laura said through gritted teeth.

"You have to tell me before you walk into a lion's den." Damon told her.

"Why so that you can stop me?" Laura protested.

"Uhh...Yes!" Damon smirked as he extended his hand towards her. "It would be rude not to dance, you know." He insisted as Laura sighed and relented. She took his hand and curtsied.

"It is tradition." Laura said, giving him a fake smile.

Although she had protested, Laura wasn't entirely against dancing with Damon. They hadn't been physically intimate since Denver, and she missed even the slightest touch of his hand against her skin. Therefore, even if it was only a dance, being this close to him, would have to suffice.

Damon and Laura walked out to the ballroom, took their places. When the music started, they began to waltz.

"You look stunning, if it isn't obvious." Damon complemented her.

"Thank you." Laura blushed, wishing she didn't have to do what Elena did in the show. This might be the last time they were civil to each other for a while, unless she could find a way around it.

It was time to change partners, therefore Damon twirled Laura around where she found herself in Stefan's arms, and they began to dance. Over Stefan's shoulder, Laura noticed Damon dancing with Rebekah, an intense attack of jealousy flared up as she suddenly remembered what would happen later if she didn't intervene. There was no way Laura was going to let Damon sleep with Rebekah, even if it killed her. In the meantime, all Laura needed to do was to execute the plan to get her in to see Esther, then make sure she was careful with her choice of words when Damon confronted her. Hopefully, she could prevent the upcoming disaster, as seeing him with Rebekah, nearly broke her heart.

However, now was not the time to be concerned with the Rebekah and Damon situation. Stage one of the show plan had to be executed, which was where flirting with Stefan would become an inconvenient necessity.

"Hmm. He dances, and I didn't even have to beg." Laura smiled sweetly.

"Well Mayor Lockwood dragged me out here. Couldn't exactly say no." Stefan said, glancing over to Damon, who kept looking in the way of Stefan and Laura. "Took you about thirty seconds to put Damon in a mood."

"He's just looking out for me." Laura told him.

"I think he needs to figure out that you can look out for yourself." Stefan smirked, clearly trying to charm her with pretending to show how willing he was to empower her.

"I need to talk to you." Laura whispered.

"Okay, so talk." Stefan shrugged.

"Not here." Laura said quietly, as she looked around furtively, before pulling him off the dancefloor and dragging him outside and began to explain their plan once they were far enough away from the house not to be heard by prying vampire ears. "We need to know whatever Esther is planning. She won't tell any of her kids, but she might tell me. She doesn't know we know about the sire-line issue, and she probably knows that I want Klaus dead. But I need to get inside, and I can't get to her with two bodyguards." Laura

"Why are you telling me this?" Stefan asked.

"Because Damon won't let me anywhere near her without protection. And because you care more about getting rid of Klaus more than you care about anything else, so...I thought you might help." Laura shrugged.

Stefan winced at Laura's comment. "What? Am I wrong?" Laura asked.

"No, you're not wrong. What do you need me to do?" Stefan regained his composure.

"Make sure that I can get into that room with Esther. Alone." Laura instructed him. "I need you to stop Damon from following me. Do whatever you have to, apart from staking him." She added.

"You sure you can do this?" Stefan raised an eyebrow.

Laura took a deep breath, she didn't want to do it, but she had no choice. "I can do this." She nodded. "I'll text Damon to meet us in the library. I'll be there in a couple of minutes." She told him before walking off back to the ball while sending the text to Damon.

Laura was alone, standing by the window in the library as Damon walked in.

"Got your text. What are we doing in here?" Damon asked, as suddenly Stefan came out of nowhere and broke Damon's neck, resulting in Damon collapsing on the floor unconscious. Laura's heart sank at the sight of him, he was going to be hurt by her actions, but Laura needed to deal with Esther.

"Well, better hurry up. He won't be down for long." Stefan warned her.

Laura left the library and headed upstairs to find Esther. She was heading down one of the hallway's when Elijah appeared from behind.

"Elena. I understand my mother requested to see you." Elijah said quietly, but loud enough for anyone with vampire ears to hear to ensure they stuck to the show plan.

"Uh, yeah. Why, is something wrong?" Laura frowned.

"Well, her ability to forgive my brother after everything he's done to destroy this family strikes me as a little strange to say the least." Elijah mused.

"Do you think that it's an act?" Laura asked.

"It has me asking questions I never thought I'd ask. Can I depend on you to tell me what she says?" Elijah replied.

"Of course. I'll find you later, okay?" Laura smiled.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Rated M for strong language and explicit sexual content.**

**I hope you all enjoy.**

Elijah left Laura at the door to Esther's room. He vamp-sped down the hallway as if he was in a hurry to get away, which Laura thought was strange as Elijah escorting her shouldn't be a cause for concern. Laura didn't have time to ponder upon Elijah's odd behavior as Finn answered the door.

"You're alone. Wise choice." Finn said, looking up and down the hallway.

Laura walked into the room and noticed Esther holding a smoking plant, which she recognized as sage.

"It's only sage. I've spelled it so we can speak freely without fear of being overheard." Esther told her. That'll be all Finn, thank you." She said as Finn left them alone. "You must have a million questions for me Elena. Please." Esther gestured to the sofa; they sat down.

"How are you alive? Are you a ghost? Or..." Laura started.

"Not exactly. When I died the witch, Ayana preserved my body with a spell. She was a close friend of mine, an ancestor of your friend Bonnie." Esther told her.

"So that's why only Bonnie and her mom could open up the casket." Laura nodded in understanding.

"They complete the Bennett bloodline. I drew power from them and their ancestors who were with me on the other side." Esther told her.

"So, you've been on the other side for a thousand years?" Laura asked.

"Nature's way of punishing me for turning my family into vampires. But there is a way for me to undo the evil I created." Esther said.

"You're gonna help us kill Klaus, aren't you?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"One thing at a time Elena. For now, I simply need your help." Esther smiled. "I understand Rebekah shared the story of my family. How I upset the balance of nature by turning my children into vampires." She said.

"She said you did it to protect them from the werewolves." Laura nodded.

"It's true. But in no time at all, they began to feed on human blood. They ravaged the town with no remorse. Eventually, Niklaus turned against me." Esther told her.

"How are you gonna kill him? He's immortal." Laura asked.

"It will take time, magic, and your assistance." Esther smiled.

"What do I have to do with it?" Laura sighed.

"My children believe I'm holding this ball to celebrate our reunion. But in truth I've gathered them together to perform a ritual. The first step requires blood from the doppelgänger. Only a drop. Its essence will be in the champagne toast later on this evening. Will you do it, or shall I?" Esther asked, as she suddenly began to cough.

"Are you okay?" Laura frowned, as Esther stopped coughing and regained her composure, before nodding and continuing to prepare for the spell.

Esther held out the long thin knife in her hands. Laura was initially shocked by the size, but she knew it would only be a pinprick. Therefore, she removed her glove and gave her finger to Esther. Esther pricked her finger and squeezed the small drops of blood into a glass chalice that was already filled with some kind of liquid.

"Elijah is more suspicious than the others, so he may need more persuasion. But they must all drink at the toast in order to be linked as one." Esther told her.

"What do you mean "linked as one"?" Laura asked.

"You said yourself Klaus can't be killed. But tonight's spell links all my children together, so that if one goes, they all go." Esther smiled.

"What?" Laura said in shock.

"I love my family, Elena, but they are an abomination. I betrayed nature when I created them. It's my duty to kill them." Esther explained.

"Is there anything else you want from me? Laura asked.

"That will do." Esther said. "Goodbye Elena." She smiled as Laura quickly left the room and made her way back to the foyer, where she was immediately joined by Elijah.

"So how was my mother?" Elijah asked.

"Intense." Laura sighed.

"And for what reason did she need to speak with you in private?" Elijah asked as he offered her a glass of champagne. At that moment Laura noticed Esther on the staircase looking at her, making her feel uncomfortable. "Elena? Should I be concerned about my mother's intentions?" Elijah asked.

"She just wanted to apologize for trying to have me killed." Laura lied.

"So, it's true, then? She's forgiven Klaus?" Elijah raised an eyebrow.

"It's true." Laura nodded, however, she mouthed the words "Don't drink the champagne."

At that moment, the sound of the tapping of crystal rang out. Laura looked up as she saw Esther looking down at the guests from the staircase. In her hand she held a glass of what looked like pink champagne, although Laura knew better.

"Good Evening, Ladies, and Gentleman. Waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass. It provides me with no greater joy then to see my family back together as one. I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers!" Esther called out.

"Cheers!" the crowd rang out in unison, as everyone drank from their glasses.

"Cheers." Elijah smiled as he and Laura clinked their glasses together. Laura sipped hers, and to her astonishment, Elijah drank his with a twinkle in his eyes, as if he were up to something.

Once the toast was over, the crowd began to disperse, and Laura went to look for Stefan and Damon.

"Elena. Did you get what you want?" Laura heard Damon from behind her.

Laura turned to face him. "Actually, yes." She said.

"Good, tell me on the ride home. We're leaving. Come on." Damon said as he grabbed her by the arm.

"Uh no, Damon let go of me. Look, I'm sorry that I had to cut you out of the plan." Laura hissed.

"There shouldn't have been a plan. You shouldn't be here." Damon said angrily.

"Do you think I like going behind your back? I don't. But if I hadn't asked Stefan to help, then you would've tried to be the hero, and it would've ruined everything." Laura argued back through gritted teeth.

"Sorry for trying to keep you alive. Clearly Stefan doesn't give a crap anymore." Damon's eyes blazed.

"Now you're mad at me for including Stefan?" Laura frowned.

"No, I'm mad at you because I love you!" Damon cried.

"Well, now you know what my problem was Damon, because I had to have your neck snapped for exactly the same reason!" Laura's eyes blazed. "I stole it from the Damon Salvatore school of heroism." She said, hoping a joke would diffuse the situation slightly. However, Caroline managed to provide the distraction.

"Have you guys seen Matt?" Caroline asked.

"I saw him go upstairs." Laura told Caroline, hoping someone else would stop Kol from hurting Matt. She wanted to help, but she knew Caroline and Stefan would be able to handle it between them. "Damon and I were just leaving. Ask Stefan to help you, he should be around somewhere." Laura looked around the room for Stefan, who she noticed was at the far end, talking with Carol Lockwood. "He's over there with Mrs. Lockwood." She said as Caroline nodded and left to find Stefan, but not before giving Laura a warning look.

Laura and Damon got into the car and he drover her home in silence. He was still angry, but she had made her point, if the roles were reversed, he would have done the something similar to protect her. When they got back, Laura got out of the car and Damon followed. She didn't want him to go back to the Grill for a drink, as he might bump into Rebekah, and end up having a one-night stand with her, therefore she knew she needed to stall him.

"Do you want to come inside?" Laura asked.

"Sure." Damon replied. His voice not sounding as angry as she expected. Laura hoped he had understood what she meant by what she said to him at the ball.

Once inside, Laura walked over to the dining table and took off her shawl, her heart was beating fast as she didn't know what to say to Damon; fortunately, Damon spoke first.

"Did you mean what you said at the ball, about why you had my neck snapped?" he asked.

"Yes." Laura nodded, wishing it weren't true, but it was time to admit she had already fallen for him. "I was protecting you because the person you usually need protecting from is yourself. And sometimes, you seem completely incapable of doing that." She hung her head down, unable to look at him.

Damon did say anything for a moment, clearly absorbing the implications of Laura's actions. "What did Esther have to say?" he asked, changing the subject.

"If you must know, she's planning on killing all of her children." Laura told him. "She took a drop of my blood and infused it into the champagne toast, so that they would all link together. When something happens to one of them, it happens to all of them." She said. "I warned Elijah to not drink the champagne, so that the spell would fail." She added. "But he did." Her eyes fell.

"Hopefully whatever Elijah's Plan B is, will work." Damon said.

"Elijah says he's got a plan." Laura told him, turning to face Damon for the first time. "I trust him." She nodded.

"I'm sorry for being mad at you." Damon sighed. "I… I …"

"Don't." Laura shook her head. "I get it. You were being protective over me. But there was no way Esther would invite me to see her with all of those people around. And in a twisted way, I had the added protection of Klaus. He won't let anything happen to my precious doppelganger blood." Tears began to well in Laura's eyes. She was already fed up with being a doppelganger, how Elena managed to cope all of these years was beyond her. Laura swallowed before starting to peel off her gloves.

"Stop!" Damon said.

"Stop what?" Laura frowned with confusion.

"Don't take your gloves off." He replied as she could tell he was stood right behind her. "When I was human, it was considered scandalous for a lady to take off her gloves in the presence of a gentleman." He said seductively.

"I'm not a lady." Laura laughed nervously, her tears disappearing.

"To me you are." Damon said, his voice deadly serious.

Suddenly Damon began to run his fingers along Laura's naked shoulders and down her arms, initially making her jump, then shiver with excitement. She hadn't initially brought him back for anything other than to distract him, but if Elijah was wrong and she did go home the following week, she and Damon may never have another chance of being alone together, and this time, she wasn't going to waste it.

"That's good, don't ever stop." Laura whispered in ecstasy, however, Damon suddenly stopped.

"Elena? Are you sure you want to take things that far?" he asked.

Laura turned her head to look at him and smiled. "I've never been more certain in my entire life." She said.

"Is this for real?" he frowned. "You're not going to go running back to my brother the moment he's over his little Klaus revenge scheme?"

Laura took a deep breath, wishing Damon hadn't killed the moment, but she knew he was insecure when it came to Stefan's relationship with Elena, and he desperately needed this reassurance.

"I'm not going to lie as say I have no feelings for Stefan at all." Laura told him. "But I'm no longer _in love_ with him; he is my past and he was my first real love, but that's gone. I guess deep down, there is always some sentimental affection for your first love, even for those who hate the person they were in love with." Laura stroked Damon's cheek. "You know, Stefan and I never discussed our future. Because, I think deep down we knew we didn't one." She shook her head.

"And we do?" Damon asked.

"That's up to you." Laura smiled.

Damon's eyes shone with a happiness Laura had never seen before. "I'm here as long as you want me." He told her.

"I hope you're prepared." Laura grinned. "Because that is going to be for a very long time. But for the time being I think we should turn our phones off." Laura whispered, as she took her phone out of her bag and switched it off, not an easy feat with gloves on. Likewise, Damon did the same, before returning to caress her arms.

"No interruptions." Damon whispered into her ear as his mouth made its way down Laura's neck, placing small pecks upon the most sensitive parts of her skin.

Laura closed her eyes with bliss, his tenderness belied the monster within. His warm breath against her skin, reminding her that once upon a time, Damon was human, and he was revealing this side of him to her, and only her. This knowledge gave her a sense of empowerment, only she could tame the beast within him, and unlike Caroline, Laura knew Damon's intentions were pure and true. After all, Damon and Elena were destined to end up married with children. Part of Laura wanted that for her and Damon, yet another part of her wanted to turn and be with him for all eternity, such had the intensity of her feelings for him developed over the past two months.

Damon lowered the zipper at the back of Laura's dress, pushing it down, and allowing it to fall to the floor, revealing her black corset, matching garter belt and stockings.

"Holy shit Elena." Damon swore. "If I weren't already dead, I'd swear you were trying to kill me." He joked, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her in tight, so that her back was pressed up against his chest.

Damon's lips made it to her neck once more, this time he scraped his blunt teeth gently down her carotid artery, just to remind her what he was, not that she needed it. He lifted one hand, so that it caressed the shape of her breast through the corset, while his other hand ventured south, to explore her most intimate parts. His hand found its way into her panties, once inside, he masterfully began to softly rub his fingers up and down her slit, a move which caused a delicious throbbing sensation between Laura's thighs and elicited a moan of pleasure from her lips.

In response, Laura put her hand behind her back and found the outline of Damon's manhood, which was already hard through his pants. She gently ran her hand up and down the shape, feeling him growing with her every touch, even through the material of his tux.

"I think you're overdressed." Laura whispered as she turned around and pulled on his bow tie, so that it hung around his neck.

The next task was a little harder, as she was still wearing the gloves, and there was no way she would be able to unbutton his shirt with them on. She removed them as sensually as she could, one finger at a time, making Damon laugh at her ungainly efforts. Once finished, she returned to unbuttoning his shirt, revealing a little more of his chest. She kissed the bare skin which had been covered by the shirt while Damon hand continued exploring the contents of Laura's panties. Eventually, with a little help from Damon, the shirt was gone, allowing Laura to explore with her lips. Damon, on the other hand, clearly wanted to kiss her, as he lifted her chin and placed his lips upon hers.

Laura parted her lips slightly as their tongues entwined with a passionate urgency, which was radiating throughout Laura's body. She moved her hands up Damon's chest, taking in the shape of his toned muscles, the fine hairs, which led to his treasure trail. Once again, Laura was discovering was what an amazing kisser Damon was. Laura had had a fairly wild time at college, having had multiple boyfriends and sexual partners. She had kissed a lot of men, but nobody had ever kissed her like Damon. He was wild and passionate, yet tender and gentle at the same time. Damon had been around for over a hundred and seventy years, and he was putting every bit of experience into the kiss, and it showed.

Damon wrapped his arm around Laura's waist, while she wrapped hers around his neck and closed her eyes. Suddenly, Damon's hand left her panties and she felt herself being hoisted up bridal style as a rush of wind swept through her hair, before Damon placed her back on the ground, where she was stood with her back against a wall. Opening her eyes, Laura saw they were in her bedroom, and realized Damon must have carried her up with his vamp-speed.

Their lips joined once more, with even more urgency, instinctively, Laura lifted her leg around Damon's behind, while Damon pressed his hard length up against her panties, letting her feel him, which only served to make her wetter for him.

Damon lifted Laura up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He walked them over to the bed, where he gently lay her down on her back. Laura pulled him towards her with her legs, which were still crossed behind his back. They continued to kiss, as if their lives depended on it.

Eventually Damon broke the kiss to momentarily stare at her with such love and devotion, Laura's heart almost exploded with the intensity of it all. Damon then softly ran one hand up Laura's thigh, with just enough pressure to tease her. His kisses made their way down her neck, paying special attention to the skin covering her carotid artery, which caused Laura's heart to race, the knowledge of what he was and what he was capable of doing without a second thought, sent a shiver up her spine. He was everything Laura wanted, passionate, adventurous, and especially dangerous. For some reason, Laura thought those words were familiar, however, she was soon distracted by Damon's lips forming a smile against her skin, while he continued making his way down to her chest.

"I hope this isn't a favorite." Damon whispered as his lips reached her corset. Before he gave her chance to reply, he ripped it in two, slightly startling her in the process as his hands began to caress her breasts. "That's much better." He whispered. "I can always get you another one." He added as he took one of Laura's nipples into his mouth and began to suck.

Laura's back arched at the sensation. Her breasts had never been particularly sensitive to being sucked during foreplay. But either Damon was a master with his lips and tongue, or Elena's body was more sensitive than Laura's old one. Whichever one it was, Damon was already turning her into a writhing mess, causing. Laura's legs to relax as she ran her fingers through Damon's inky black hair, while he swapped breasts, repeating his tortuous ministrations on her other nipple.

Once finished, Damon's attention turned to Laura's inner thighs. Starting at the back of the knee, first of all, he stroked them, before his lips made contact with her skin. At the same time, his fingers stroked the outside of her lace panties. Laura thought she was going explode there and then, however Damon was applying the right amount of pressure to work her up but keep her from her release.

"Oh my god Damon, that's good." Laura panted as his lips made their way closer to the apex of her thigh, before Damon switched leg and started again. Once finished he kissed the front of her panties and made his way up her stomach, with a very smug look on his face.

"I haven't even started yet." Damon growled. "But I just needed to kiss you again to make sure you're real." He said as their lips met, and they began to kiss ferociously. All the while Damon's fingers were lightly grazing over the lace of her panties, causing her sex to throb.

In the meantime, Laura's hands had begun to roam Damon's body, of which she couldn't get enough. Pale white bodies weren't usually her thing, but on Damon it looked extremely sexy, as it contrasted with his icy blue eyes and jet-black hair. Her hands made their way down to Damon's pants, where she managed to unfasten the button. Damon quickly dispensed of them, revealing a pair of black cotton boxer briefs. Laura's hands slid under the back of the waistband, cupping and stoking his behind, causing Damon to emit a growl of satisfaction, a sound Laura knew she would never get enough of hearing.

As they kissed, their hips rocked together, the friction affecting them both, turning them on even more. However, Laura had a burning desire to taste Damon, and her knowledge from the show, and their brief time in the hotel room, was enough for her to know he didn't mind a woman being in charge. Therefore, Laura rolled them over and pushed herself up, so she was looking down at him.

Damon was clearly taken aback by this move, although she could tell he was a little impressed by her boldness. She bent down and kissed him before her lips moved down to his neck. As a joke, she gently scraped her blunt teeth along his carotid artery, which caused him to moan with desire. Laura's lips traveled south, kissing his chest and stomach along the way. Taking in his fabulous scent and taste as she went along. Laura kissed his treasure trail, and eventually, she found the waistband of his boxer briefs. She hooked her fingers under the elastic and pulled them down. Damon lifted his back up ever so slightly to allow her to take them off.

His nakedness revealed a sight which had plagued Laura's dreams for the last few months. He was even more impressive close up and fully erect. Laura ran her tongue up the underside of his cock before taking him into her mouth, all the while her fingers wrapped around his length and started to gently pump. Damon's eyes rolled back into his head as his hand reached out for Laura's hair and he began to thread his fingers through her chocolate locks.

"Fuck, Elena." Damon whispered, lifting his head and grabbing a pillow. "That feels good." Laura simply smiled and hummed, knowing it would reverberate and intensify his experience, which she wanted to make as good as she could. Laura could tell it was working, because she felt him harden even more. She opened up her throat and took him in deeper, pressing her hand on his hip, hoping he wouldn't buck at the sensation, because he was a lot stronger than a normal man, and his actions could prove deadly if he lost control. Although the thought of Damon losing control like that was laughable.

"Elena, if carry on like that, we're not going to get to the good part. You need to stop." Damon moaned before looking down at her.

Laura got the message, realizing she was doing a little bit too good. She kissed her way back up Damon's body, her hands exploring his torso, because for some reason, she felt the irresistible need to touch him. Once she reached his face, she sat up and pulled the clips out of her hair. She shook her head, so her hair fell in loose curls down her back. Laura lowered her face to his and kissed him once more, her hair falling around them like curtains giving them a sense of privacy.

Damon rolled them back over so that he was on top. He kissed Laura's throat, before making his way to her breast once more. He lavished each one with exquisite attention for a few moments, before making his way further south. He stroked the garter belt and lifted her calf onto his shoulder.

"We're keeping this on." He told her; his voice thick with lust. "And the pumps." He added, as he kissed the inside of her ankle.

Damon's lips made their way down the inside of Laura's calf and all the way to her tops of her thigh, before he switched legs, and repeated the action. By this point Laura had lost all semblance of the world around them, her focus was solely on Damon and pleasure. He ran his finger up the outside of her now very damp panties.

"Now what do we have here?" he asked seductively, before kissing the outside of her panties. "I think this requires further investigation." He smirked as he pulled the lace to one side. "Good job I'm hungry." He said, looking up at Laura. But instead of his normal face, the veins had formed around his eyes, which had turned red and his fangs had lengthened.

If this were any other vampire, Laura would have been terrified, but this was Damon, and whatever he had up his sleeve was only ever going to give her pleasure. Therefore, her heart was beating considerably faster in expectation, rather than fear.

Laura lowered her hand to Damon's cheek. "You're beautiful." She whispered, as the whites of his eyes returned, and his fangs retracted.

Damon smiled. "So are you." He said. "Now lay back, I want to make you scream."

Laura did as she was told; Damon lifted her legs and pushed them against her chest. Suddenly, Laura felt hot air of Damon's breath as he blew open her folds, tracing his tongue from the entrance to her pussy, up her labia and gently flicking her clit with his tongue, almost sending her through the roof with ecstasy. The throbbing she already had between her legs was now turning into a desperate ache, and his teasing was just making it worse.

Damon's tongue began to circle her entrance, causing Laura to almost buck, forcing Damon to place the palm of his hand on the flat of her stomach. Suddenly she felt Damon's tongue inside her, using it in a way where he was fucking her with it, whilst at the same time he began massaging her clit with his finger. A heat began to burn inside of her like she'd never felt before, as she began to moan with pleasure.

"Oh my god...Damon." she panted at the intensity of the heat building up inside her stomach, as she thought she was going to explode.

Damon then spread her legs apart, opening her up to him, however, this enabled Laura to be able to lift her head up a little and see what he was doing. He glanced up at her and threw her a mischievous grin, before lowering his gaze back down to her pussy, ready to once more give it his undivided attention.

Damon's tongue began to move north, as he licked and sucked her folds before reaching her clit. He gently inserted two fingers inside her and began to slowly thrust his hand, whilst he took her clit in his mouth and began to suck on the bundle of nerves. The effect was almost instantaneous. Laura practically forgot her own name as the heat which had been building in her stomach began to burn so hot, she thought her entire body would set on fire. The only thing she knew was pleasure and Damon was the one who was responsible for giving it to her.

"Oh yes...yes...yes...oh...yes...oh yes...Damon." Laura panted, as Damon inserted another finger and increased the tempo of his thrusting.

This only lasted for a few minutes as suddenly Laura felt the white-hot spasms of her orgasm take over her body, her back arched and she momentarily went rigid as heat the throbbing in her pussy turned into convulsions of pleasure, wreaking havoc on her senses. She no longer had the ability to speak, her mouth only able to form a silent O.

Finally, the spasms began to subside as Damon withdrew his hand and made his way back up her body, kissing her stomach and chest on his way up, until he was hovering above her. Laura cupped his face, pulling him towards her and kissing him before he got chance to speak, allowing her to taste herself on his lips, which she surprisingly found quite arousing as she felt her insides begin to throb once more.

Damon asked as he pulled away from the kiss with a huge grin on his face. "I believe you enjoyed that." he smirked.

"You have no idea." Laura giggled as she felt his cock prodding at her entrance, ready to be invited in.

Laura slid her hand between them and took hold of Damon's length as she lifted her hips and began to rub it against the slickness of her pussy, whilst Damon bent his head one more time to kiss her.

"I'm going to ask you one last time, are you sure you want this? There's no going back afterwards." he whispered.

"I've never wanted anything or anyone so much in my life." she replied as she positioned him at her entrance. "And it's not about sex, it's about you. I want you in my life forever, and in my body now!" she demanded.

Damon, clearly happy to oblige, wiped his manhood up and down the slickness of her folds, before aligning it with her entrance and slowly pushing his hips towards hers, as his dick slowly filled her up inside, stretching her until they were united as one, causing them both to moan with pleasure.

Once Laura had adjusted to fullness of his cock, Damon began to thrust, gently at first, allowing Laura to match his every movement at the same pace. However, Damon began to pick up speed, increasing the friction between them as the heat began building once again in the pit of her stomach. Damon tucked her hair behind her ear as he cupped her face with one hand and ran his hand down her body with the other, pulling her knee up, which she hooked around his waist, to allow for deeper penetration, all the while he carried on kissing her. Laura in turn had one hand behind Damon's neck, raking her fingers through his hair, whilst stroking his face with the other hand.

As they became more desperate with desire for each other, the pace of their thrusts increased, and so did the sound of their moans. After a few minutes Damon spun them around so that Laura was on top. Damon moved his hips, thrusting upwards and into her. Laura rotated her hips, grinding her clit against him as the throbbing inside became more intense after every powerful thrust, all the while his hands gently stroked her body, heightening her senses.

Laura's entire body was becoming more and more sensitive to Damon's touch, yet what she really needed from him to send her over the edge was his lips on hers, his tongue in her mouth. Gently, she grabbed his hair and pulled his head back with one hand, while the other went behind his neck, lifting his head a little. Her forcefulness to him by surprise, however, his expression was one of someone who surrendered his body and soul to her, and was completely at her mercy, just like she was his. She kissed his throat, then dragged her tongue up his neck until she found his mouth, where she bit his bottom lip, eliciting a groan of desire from Damon's mouth.

"Fuck me harder." Laura demanded as Damon thrust upwards with more force, while Laura attacked his lips and mouth.

Damon rolled them back over so that he was on top once more; he lifted her legs, pushing them against Laura's chest and wrapping them behind his neck, allowing deeper penetration; he then began to thrust with even greater vigor, all the while massaging her clit. Him being so deep inside her sent Laura spiraling and she once again felt the heat building up inside her throbbing pussy, the telltale signs of her impending orgasm.

"I'm gonna come." she said breathlessly.

"Me too, I don't think I can last much longer." Damon panted, as he moved her legs, so they were wrapped around his waist, while lowering his body down, so she could feel his weight on top of her.

He took her hand and laced it in his, moving their joined hands towards her clit. He guided her finger around her clit and worked it in circular motions, all the while giving her with the most loving and sensual look on his gorgeous face, just to add to the sensory overload, until the contractions started. Surprisingly, the heat was as intense as when he'd had his mouth on her.

"Oh yes...yes...yes...oh...yes...oh yes... oh my god Damon." Laura cried out as her insides suddenly went from intense throbbing to white hot spasms.

Laura thought her entire body was about to be ripped apart from heat and pleasure; her back arched before her body went rigid while the spasms continued to wreak havoc throughout her body. As her contractions began to ease slightly Laura opened her eyes and watched Damon as her orgasm was milking his cock to his own release.

"Oh god...yes...fuck...Elena...yes...aargh..." Damon moaned as his own release took over, his face scrunching up in exquisite agony, making him, in her eyes look even more beautiful than usual. Suddenly his body became rigid before shuddering slightly as Laura felt the wonderful sensation of his warm seed erupting inside of her. Damon lowered his forehead towards hers, allowing them to tenderly kiss, before collapsed on top of her for a moment to catch his breath.

The next morning, Laura woke to bright sunshine and the warmth of being wrapped in Damon's arms. He was still sound asleep, giving her chance to look at him carefully. Laura was surprised by how young and angelic he appeared while asleep. No hint of the devil beneath the apparent innocence.

Laura smiled. She felt deliciously sore after their night together. They had made love four more times before collapsing with exhaustion; each time better than the last. Laura wanted to make the most of the opportunity, just in case there wasn't another, as she was now unsure of what the future held. She turned over and picked her phone up off the nightstand next to her. Damon had brought it upstairs during one of their breaks while he got himself a drink.

She switched it on, only to find what seemed like hundreds of messages from Stefan, Bonnie and Caroline.

_When you get this, tell Damon to call me._ Was the one from Stefan.

_Where are you?_ Caroline's first message said. Then she went on to read the others from her. _Kol tried to kill Matt.; Matt is okay, just a couple of broken fingers.; Are you okay Elena. I tried calling, where are you?_

There were more, but Laura wanted to see Bonnie's messages as she already knew a lot of the content of Caroline's. She opened them and read them, and then read them again, completely stunned by the contents. She turned around and shook Damon to wake him up.

"Uh…" Damon frowned as he slowly opened his eyes. "Elena?" he smiled. However, his face fell when he noticed the expression on Laura's face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"It's Bonnie's mom." Laura said in shock. "She turned into a vampire last night." She said.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

Laura stared at her phone for a moment in shock. She'd been trying to avoid this so that Bonnie and her mom could reconcile and maybe do magic together. However, fate intervened, and Abby was still a vampire.

"I'm gonna call Bonnie." Laura said, but Damon shook his head.

"Are there any other messages from Bonnie?" he asked. "Apart from the one telling you her mom is a vampire?"

"No." Laura frowned.

"Good, because right now, it's Caroline she needs." Damon told her. "Blondie can help with Abby's transition. She's a genius at self-control, I mean, she hasn't killed me yet." He smiled.

"But who could have turned her?" Laura said. "And why?"

Damon took Laura's phone out of her hands and put it back on the nightstand.

"This is not your problem, not yet." Damon admitted. "I want to spend at least five minutes today being happy before we hit the shit-storm what is coming." He said, pulling Laura in towards him and wrapping his arms around her, which she appreciated as she noticed her window was open and there was a breeze in the room.

"I think I could be persuaded to stay." Laura smiled. "In fact, you might need to make an effort to get me to move." She added as she snuggled into his chest and breathed in Damon's scent before looking up at him in confusion. "How do you manage to look so hot first thing in a morning? Its so not fair." She grumbled as Damon laughed.

"I have a great plastic surgeon." Damon joked. "I'm really a hundred and seventy-one."

"You're an ass." Laura shook her head, laughing.

"You weren't complaining about my ass last night." Damon whispered as he lowered his head and kissed her once more.

Laura wrapped her arms around Damon's neck and her legs around his waist, pulling is hips in towards hers. She could feel his morning wood pressing up against her, ready for action, however, Laura's phone rang, disturbing their moment.

Damon dropped his head on Laura's with frustration, as Laura sighed and reached out for her phone.

"It's Caroline." Laura sighed. "I need to get it."

"Caroline." Laura answered. "I switched my phone off. I just got your messages. What happened?" she asked.

"Seriously Elena, where have you been?" Caroline screeched.

"I was in bed." Laura said innocently.

"Who's bed, yours or Damon's?" Caroline said sarcastically.

"Mine Caroline." Laura sighed.

"Whatever, we'll get to the smut drama later." Caroline said as Damon looked at Laura and stifled a laugh. "And yes Damon, don't think I don't know you're there, hiding under the sheets. I texted and called you too. So did Stefan, at first. He gave up before me. Just don't do anything I wouldn't do while I'm on the phone." She warned.

"Well that doesn't narrow it down much, now does it Blondie?" Damon joked.

"See, I knew he was there." Caroline cried out.

"Look Caroline, can we get back to Bonnie." Laura sighed, knowing Caroline and Damon were on the verge of ending up in an argument, which she would still be having with Caroline later. "What happened?" she asked.

"Abby was at Bonnie's practicing magic last night, when her mom said she needed to go out for a few minutes." Caroline told her. "When she didn't come back, Bonnie did a locator spell and found her outside the Mikaelson's." she said as Damon and Laura looked at each other with worried expressions.

"Who turned her?" Laura asked.

"Elijah did." Caroline replied.

"Are you helping Abby with the transition?" Damon asked, his voice more serious.

"We're going to meet up at the boarding house in an hour, after Bonnie makes Abby a daylight ring." Caroline told them. "So, you don't have time for any extra sordid activities. Just get dressed and get over there."

"Does Stefan know?" Damon asked.

"I can't get hold of him either. That's why I wanted to meet you there, so that we can find him." Caroline said.

"He did text me asking where I was." Laura said. "But it wasn't long after we left." She said.

"All hell broke loose after that, but there's no time to discuss it now. I'll meet you at the Salvatore's in an hour." Caroline said before hanging up.

"Hmm." Damon frowned. "Caroline doesn't know me very well." He said. "Making time for extra sordid activities is my specialty." He grinned as he threw back the bedsheets, got up, went into the bathroom and switched the shower on. "You coming?" he called out with a smirk on his face.

Laura didn't need asking twice, so she got out of bed and joined him.

Just under an hour later, Damon and Laura arrived back at the Salvatore boarding house. just as they got to the door, it opened, and there stood Rebekah and Stefan, who was only wearing his pants. Laura was tempted to laugh at the situation as it reminded her, not only of the scene where Damon and Rebekah had just had sex, but also the scene where Stefan turned up as Damon and Elena had just had sex.

"Umm…" Stefan started as Rebekah gave Laura a filthy look and smiled coyly at Stefan before leaving.

Damon and Laura looked at each other with shock before staring at Stefan.

"I can explain." Stefan said, as they walked back into the house.

"You don't need to give me a lecture about the birds and the bees brother." Damon shook his head. "I was the one who gave you that talk when we were kids." He smirked as Stefan looked uncomfortable.

"I should go put something on." He said.

"And I need to change into some normal clothes." Damon looked down at the white shirt and black pants he wore which was part of the tuxedo, before turning to Laura. "I won't be a minute; I'll meet you in the library." He said before rushing off upstairs to change.

Laura took off her coat and made her way to the library; sitting down on one of the chairs and feeling a little apprehensive. There was clearly going to be an argument of some kind, especially when Caroline turned up and gave her scathing assessment of Laura and Damon's night. However, Laura was now feeling slightly less guilty, as Stefan had fulfilled the role of Damon for Rebekah, which might come in handy further down the line.

Damon was the first to join her as Stefan must have been in the shower. He bent down and gently kissed her on the lips. It was only a peck, but to Laura, it was a promise of so much more. However, for the time being, they would have to make do as Caroline chose that moment to walk in.

"Blondie." Damon gave Caroline a fake smile. "How good it is to see you." He said as he walked over to the wet-bar and poured himself a glass of bourbon.

"Where's Stefan?" Caroline asked.

"He's washing off last night's Original sex." Damon smirked. "I'm just going to get some breakfast from the refrigerator downstairs." He said as he headed towards the basement to grab a bloodbag.

Caroline folded her arms and looked at Laura in disgust. "I can't believe you did it." She shook her head. "I mean, seriously Elena, what were you thinking? His bedroom skills do not make up for all of the awful things he's done. While Stefan, he's the good guy. He can give you everything you need." She pleaded.

Laura stood up. "You have no idea what I want and need Caroline." She told her. "Damon makes me feel things I didn't know I could feel." She said.

"I don't think a multiple orgasm is enough of a good reason." Caroline sneered.

"For the last five months, Damon has been my rock." Laura started.

"Because he wanted to you to sleep with him, that's all." Caroline argued.

"That's a lot of work for just one night." Laura folded her arms.

"What about Stefan?" Caroline asked.

"Oh, I think he made his bed last night." Laura raised an eyebrow as Stefan walked in.

Caroline turned to Stefan. "What does she mean?" she asked as Stefan cast his eyes down furtively. "You went to see if Elena was okay after she didn't answer her phone.

"You came round to the house?" Laura asked. "When?"

"Last night, about an hour after you left, I came to find out what Esther had to say." Stefan told her. "But when I got to the house, your bedroom window was open…" he looked down. "Lets just say all of Mystic Falls could hear what you and Damon were up to last night."

"And then decided to have revenge sex with Barbie Klaus to make Elena jealous." Damon's voice came from behind Stefan. "And when she finds out, she'll kill you. Bravo brother, let's just add another problem to the growing list." He shook his head and poured some blood from a blood bag into a glass and offered it to Caroline, who took it before pouring one for himself.

"It wasn't like that." Stefan protested.

"Yeah it was." Damon argued. "Let me guess, you played hero and saved the quarterback, you went over to Elena's house to make yourself look like the hero. Instead you heard me and Elena getting to know each other a little better. You got jealous, decided to get drunk and bumped into an Original, who, once upon a ripper time, you were crazy over. Decided to piss off Elena and rekindle a bit of long-lost magic." He said. "You do know the blonde bombshell is going to think you are in love with her again. I bet she bites even harder than Katherine when pissed off." He shook his head as Stefan looked sheepish, pretty much confirming Damon's suggestion. "Sucks to be you right now." He walked over to Laura and wrapped his arm around her waist, to which Caroline rolled her eyes.

"Look, we're not here to discuss our sex-lives." Laura shook her head. "Unless Caroline, you bettered all of us and slept with Klaus." She smirked.

"Eww no!" Caroline shuddered.

"Well, I think that's the gossip done for the day." Laura sighed. "So, what happened after Damon and I left last night?" she asked, turning to Caroline.

"Stefan and I went to look for Matt." She told her. "Stefan found him upstairs with Kol, who was pretending to shake his hand, but he was really breaking his fingers." She said. "Stefan stopped Kol, but Kol snapped his neck, just as I turned up. I called out for Klaus to help, and he daggered Kol." She said.

Wait, I thought they were all linked." Damon frowned. "If Klaus daggered Kol, then how did Stefan fuck Rebekah, unless my brother is into some really kinky shit." He frowned.

"She was fully conscious all the way through." Stefan snapped.

"It would have explained a lot on her part if she was all grey and veiny." Damon joked.

"Then why didn't it work?" Caroline frowned.

"Because Abby turned." Laura said as they all turned to her, looking confused. "Esther told me she was drawing power from the unbroken Bennett witch line. By turning, Abby broke it because she couldn't be a witch and a vampire. It limited Esther's powers, so the linking spell didn't work." Laura's eyes suddenly widened. "Just before she performed the spell, she started coughing and acting a little funny." She frowned. "I bet that was when Abby turned." She said.

"But why would Abby turn just to save some vampires she doesn't know?" Caroline asked.

"It wasn't for them." Came Abby's voice as everyone turned to see Abby and Bonnie walking in. "I did it to keep Bonnie safe." She said.

"Were witchy powers not enough?" Damon asked.

Abby shook her head. "My magic was too limited to be of any help protecting my daughter." She explained. "It only works for growing my herb garden and when I'm with Bonnie. Other than that, I was completely powerless. So, I asked Elijah to turn me. I thought that way I would be stronger, and able to help Bonnie. I can still make some of my herbal remedies, I didn't need magic for that. Only my grimoire. And as long as I can get myself under control, then I'll be here to help." She smiled.

"Bonnie?" Laura asked as Bonnie simply glanced up at her. "Are you okay with this?" she asked.

"Was I given a choice?" Bonnie spat.

"Look Bonnie..." Abby started.

"Five minutes after getting my mom back, she turns into a vampire, a species under threat from a crazy witch who wants to kill all of her kids, and as a result will end up killing you." Bonnie said bitterly. "Excuse me if I don't thank you for it." She said.

"I was only trying to help." Abby pleaded.

"Well maybe you should've asked me first." Bonnie snapped.

"You know, why don't I get you some blood." Caroline said to Abby, trying to lighten the subject. "We only drink from blood-bags here." She smiled as Damon raised an eyebrow at her.

"Speak for yourself Blondie." He said as Laura threw him a scathing glance. "My brother's a bunny muncher. I wouldn't recommend it." He smiled smugly at Laura, who rolled her eyes.

"I'll show you where the blood-bags are kept." Caroline said to Abby as she led the way to the basement.

"You're in charge of the next blood run Blondie." Damon called out after Caroline, but received no reply that Laura could hear, although she did see Damon smirk, suggestion Caroline must have said something back.

The next minute, Elijah walked into the room, causing Damon and Stefan to stiffen defensively.

"What are you doing here?" Damon asked. "Don't you think you've caused enough damage?" he asked.

"Ms. Bennett and I struck a deal, which I believe is a good one to solve many of our issues." Elijah said. "Last night, the lovely Elena visited my mother under the pretense of apologizing to kill her. Am I not correct?" he asked as Laura nodded. "Ms. Bennett informed me that our mother was drawing her power from the Bennett which line to fuel her survival and magic. Her claim to have forgiven Klaus and wanting her family to be united as one, was frankly, unrealistic and completely unbelievable. My brother had killed her, and she despised vampires. The fact that my brother Finn was helping her in whatever secret little plan she was cooking up, was the final nail in the coffin, so to speak."

"So, you turned my mom to prevent your mother from drawing magic from our bloodline." Bonnie nodded.

"Your mother was also keen to turn to protect you." Elijah said. "It was a deal of mutual benefit." He said.

"So has your mother gone?" Laura asked.

"She has disappeared, yes." Elijah nodded. "We now need to make sure she doesn't kill the rest of us."

"And how would she do that?" Damon frowned.

"She still has some magic left; I believe she may create one last spell." Elijah said. "But we must remove whatever little help she has and to draw her out." He explained.

"How do we do that?" Stefan asked.

"I need my brother Finn dead." Elijah stated. "As you can appreciate, neither Klaus nor I can get our hands dirty in this matter, as Finn would be more suspicious of us." He said.

"Klaus knows?" Damon raised an eyebrow as Elijah nodded. "So why doesn't Klaus just dagger him?"

"My mother would pull the dagger out." Elijah replied. "We need to eliminate everyone who has the potential to wipe out our species."

"Ric." Laura said, panic in her eyes. "We still haven't found him."

"My mother was blocking all locator spells." Elijah smiled. "As her magic gradually weakens, so will the spell. Then a locator spell will work, and then we can find him." He nodded.

"So why are you here?" Damon looked at Elijah suspiciously.

"It is simple, I wish for you to kill my brother Finn." He said.

"Uhm, he's an original." Damon frowned. "How are we supposed to do that?" he asked.

"I believe between the four vampires, a witch and a white oak stake, should be enough to tackle my brother." Elijah said. "He's been in a coffin for nine-hundred years. He only spent one-hundred years as a vampire. You two…" he looked from Damon to Stefan and back. "You have more experience between you in the art of defending and attacking than Finn does. He might be stronger, but he doesn't have your cunning. Nor does he know enough about modern technology. I'm sure you can lure him into a trap of some kind. Include any humans who might be useful, that would also fool him." He said as Caroline returned alone.

"Where's Abby." Bonnie frowned.

"She went to the bathroom." Caroline replied as she looked at Elijah suspiciously. "What's he doing here?" she asked.

"You will be filled in with the details." Elijah said dismissively.

"And what do we get out of all of this?" Damon asked.

"Your lives." Elijah shrugged. "If my mother succeeds, we all die. You cannot fail." He said. "Have you made the stakes from the wood I gave you?" he asked.

"They're chopped up and ready to whittle." Damon nodded.

"Good, Elijah nodded. "It will give you more than one opportunity. Although, once he knows you're intent on killing him, then he will disappear."

"And after he's dead?" Laura asked.

"I believe that will draw my mother out of hiding." Elijah said. "Then we will kill her. How many stakes did you get from the piece of wood I gave you?" he asked Damon.

"Eight stakes and four arrows for the crossbow." Damon replied.

"That should suffice." Elijah nodded. "Klaus cannot know you have that many stakes in your possession. Once my brother is dead, I need them returning to me." He warned.

"No problem." Stefan smiled.

"If I find out you are lying and have more…" Elijah started.

"What exactly would we do with them?" Damon asked. "The only Original we have a problem with, is the one we can't kill." He grimaced.

"Fine." Elijah nodded, seemingly satisfied with Damon's answer. "Then I shall leave you all to it." He smiled and quickly left.

"Abby's been gone a long time." Bonnie frowned. "Which bathroom is she using?"

"Abby?" Caroline called out as the room fell silent, the vampires listening out for signs of anyone else in the house. "I can't hear her?" she frowned. "Damon, your hearing is the strongest. Can you hear anything?" she asked as Damon shook his head.

"She's gone." Bonnie cast her eyes down despondently.

"Maybe she's gone to find Jamie?" Caroline suggested as Bonnie glanced over at Laura, who sighed sadly and cast her eyes down.

Laura hadn't known the future for Abby after turning as the circumstances were different. When she discovered Abby had volunteered to turn to protect Bonnie, Laura assumed Abby would stick around. However, it clearly wasn't in Abby's nature to stay around, although she thought it might be it was for the best while Abby figured out her new life. However, this new revelation didn't make her feel any less guilty about not warning Bonnie.

"So, we're down to three vampires and a witch." Damon said as Bonnie ran out of the room. "Okay, three vampires, a doppelganger and a one-handed busboy. Great!" he said sarcastically. "Ooh, maybe the sexy psycho doctor who helped Ric and blood-jacked me might be able to help." He said. "Why don't you two see her and ask if she has any vervain guns." He said. "Rope the busboy in while Stefan and I finish whittling the rest of the stakes. Any questions?" he asked as everyone shook their heads. "We'll meet outside the Salvatore crypt in two hours for staking and Original practice. Two hours should give everyone plenty of time to prepare." He said turning to Laura and smiling. "You be careful." He whispered as Laura noticed Stefan and Caroline staring at them. "Can we at least have a little privacy?" Damon asked as they left the room, leaving Damon and Laura alone together.

"Do you think we can do this?" Laura asked, wrapping her arm around Damon's waist.

"Easy?" Damon rolled his eyes. "The guy's nine-hundred years out of touch. He's not been awake for very long, so he's not fully up to strength. Between us, we can easily take him down because we are awesome!" he grinned.

"Just be careful." Laura insisted. "I don't want to find happiness and then have it snatched away from me just because we didn't cover every angle." She said.

"Is that what I do? Bring you happiness?" Damon asked, resting his forehead against hers.

"You have no idea." Laura smiled as her eyes fell to Damon's lips and they began to kiss.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

Later that day, Laura, Caroline, Stefan, Damon and Matt met up outside the Salvatore crypt before finding a clearing in the woods to practice killing Finn. Bonnie was still looking for Abby and Meredith wasn't able to join their training session; however, she did provide some dart guns, which could be filled with vervain to slow Finn down.

"I take it mother of the year is still MIA." Damon observed as Laura rolled her eyes.

Just because she was with him in some capacity which they hadn't exactly had time to discuss, didn't mean she approved of everything he said and did. Also, as she wasn't a vampire yet, thus not sired to him, she wasn't inclined to agree with his every comment. However, in some ways, Laura knew Damon was right. Abby really was a shitty mom, and Laura should have seen it coming.

"Bonnie is trying to find her with a locator spell." Caroline told them. "But it's not working, she thinks Abby has got another witch on board sighed. "We can't wait for her. Esther will try something while her powers are at their strongest, and Finn is her best shot to help her right now." He said.

"So how are we planning on distracting him?" Laura asked.

"Remember Elijah mentioned Finn turning an old girlfriend?" Damon asked as they all nodded. "Well, I asked him who she was, just in case I knew her. Well it turns out my brother and I knew her quite well." He smiled at Stefan.

"Who?" Stefan frowned.

"Remember Sage?" Damon asked as Stefan shook his head. "We came back to Mystic Falls for a funeral, there was a sext redhead woman boxing…" he started as Stefan nodded, remembering who she was.

"She is Finn's girlfriend?" Stefan asked.

"The very one." Damon grinned. "We spent a little time together, and she showed me how to…" he started and looked over at Laura uncomfortably. "She showed me how to enjoy being a vampire instead of brooding for Katherine. Without her I'd have been celibate for a hundred and forty-five years." he winced.

Laura felt like she'd been kicked in the gut. Damon's exceptional sexual skills were largely due to the vast experience of a one-thousand-year-old vampire. Part of her was revolted, yet part of her was grateful. In the show Damon also had sex with Sage, therefore Laura was going to have to make sure that didn't happen this time, although she was pretty sure Damon wouldn't even look at another woman now.

"Enough about the sex lessons Damon, back on track." Laura rolled her eyes.

Damon looked at her comment in surprise, before continuing. "Anyway, Elijah has contacted her, and she is on her way to Mystic Falls right now to lure Finn out into the open." Damon smirked.

"But if we kill Finn, she'll die." Laura frowned. "Why would she help?"

"I don't think Elijah told her the fine print." Damon grimaced. "He told her Finn was feeling uncomfortable with the modern world and was refusing their help. She should be in Mystic Falls any time soon." He shrugged. "Anyway, it'll prove whether Elijah's witch is telling the truth or is a big fat liar." He smirked.

"If she doesn't die, then we can kill Klaus." Stefan smiled.

"Precisely." Damon nodded.

"Can we just do this?" Matt asked. "I've got a shift at the Grill in an hour."

"How are the fingers Matt?" Laura asked.

"I fixed them for him." Caroline said.

"They're cool." Matt agreed by revealing his no longer broken fingers to Laura.

"Now we know we're all fit and fine to practice, scenario number one." Damon announced, grabbing Laura and moving over to her. "You get to play Sage." He said.

"Okay." Laura sighed.

"Although Sage is here to draw Finn out, Finn is our real target; so, we distract Sage and catch Finn off guard. To do that, once Finn is in the open, we need to keep Sage separate and occupied." Stefan said, looking at Caroline. "Caroline."

"Why do I always have to be Original vampire bait?" Caroline huffed.

"We usually use you because Klaus is obsessed with you." Damon said as he walked over to Caroline. "But for right now we need you to play Finn. In the meantime, we use quarterback here, to distract Sage. Just keep her talking." he said to Matt, pushing him towards Laura.

"How?" Matt asked.

"Act interested, flirt, make her feel sorry for you, or whatever. She's a sucker for pity sex." Damon smirked.

"Clearly. She slept with you." Caroline said sarcastically, causing Laura to have to suppress a grin. It amused Laura to think that Damon would become Caroline's close friends, which was why their bickering didn't really bother Laura too much. Caroline still needed to get her hatred for Damon out of her system, and their banter was usually harmless.

"Hm. This is where the vervain comes in." Damon explained, ignoring Caroline remark. "Busboy keeps redhead occupied, I come up from behind Finn and fill him with vervain. And when he's down… Damon got behind Caroline, grabbed her arms, and put them behind her back. "I grab his arms like this." he continued.

"Ow!" Caroline winced as Stefan came up with the stake in his hand, imitating stabbing Caroline.

"Gives me time for one shot." Stefan smirked as Damon let go of Caroline.

"Got it? Good." Stefan looked around at everyone, who all nodded. "So, we all have one stake, we keep it hidden and we look out for any opportunity we have."

"No last-minute attacks of pity for any of them." Damon looked at Laura.

"Don't worry about me. I'm not letting Finn risk any of your lives." Laura said.

"Barbie?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I'm ready." Caroline nodded. "Anything that will prove Elijah's witch wrong so we can kill Klaus and free Tyler from his sire bond."

"Busboy?" Damon turned to Matt.

"Do I have a choice?" Matt asked.

"Good point." Damon gave Matt and evil grin.

"We have 12 stakes, 12 shots at killing one Original. We can do this." Stefan said encouragingly. "Alright, let's try another scenario. Elena grab a crossbow." He said, handing Laura the crossbow. "Matt, you play Finn." He started.

For the next hour, they worked on various scenarios to kill Finn. Under normal circumstances, Laura would have been fairly confident this plan would work, however, there was an added complication, Damon. When Finn died in the show, Damon had been trussed up by Rebekah in revenge for using her for sex and to get the information about the white oak tree. This time, Damon hadn't even slept with Rebekah, nevermind the threesome where Sage messed around in Rebekah's head. On the other hand, Damon would be the ideal person to keep Sage occupied while they killed Finn. Which was why, when they received the text from Elijah telling them Sage was in Mystic Falls and she was taking Finn out for a drink, Laura decided to risk it and head to the Grill with Damon, Caroline, Stefan and Matt.

So as to not arouse suspicion, Stefan was already at the bar and Damon was going to join him, but not before making his presence known to Sage, while Laura and Caroline sat in one of the booths. That way they could stay almost hidden and listen in on the conversation between the two lovebirds. Not only that, but they'd received a text from Meredith Fell, to let them know she had finished work and would meet them in the Grill with some extra vervain syringes and a dart gun, which she was currently hiding under her table and was pointed at Finn, however, she needed them to be distracted so nobody would suspect her.

Their booth was right behind where Finn and Sage were sat. Although vampires had super-hearing, the noise and bustle of the Grill occasionally made conversations hard for them to distinguish, therefore, Matt had ensured they were sat close enough for not only Caroline to hear their conversation, but even Laura was close enough to hear what they were talking about, and could just about see them. Damon's hearing was a little better than Stefan and Caroline's, due to age and his continual diet of human blood, meaning they could sit at the bar. Both the Salvatore's and the girls carried small bottles of vervain, to ensure they could spike a drink if needed. In the meantime, they listened in on Finn and Sage's conversation, waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

"You've never had tequila before?" Sage asked, as Damon walked in and headed to the bar, walking straight past giving Sage and giving her a seductive smile, which, judging from the look of shock on her face, must have momentarily taken her aback.

"Mm-mm." Finn shook his head, grabbing Sage's attention as she regained her composure and poured salt first on her own wrist, then on Finn's. She licks the salt off her wrist and knocked the tequila straight back while Finn watched on before doing the same.

"Happy now?" Finn asked as Sage hands him some lime, which he sucks on.

"I'm truly awed by the evolution of mankind." Finn joked, causing Sage to laugh.

At that moment a man approached their table.

"Hey Sage." The man said.

"Hey Troy." Sage smiled as the man called Troy nodded and left.

"You know him?" Finn asked.

"I turned him." Sage told him.

"You turned him? Why?" Finn looked confused.

"Because I'm in enemy territory." Sage told him. When your brother called, I thought I might need a little back up. You can't trust anyone here." She said, looking around, suspiciously, just as Matt walked up to their table to clear away their glasses. Sage grabbed his wrist before he could leave. "Two more tequilas?" She said.

"Yeah, cool, I'll let your waitress know." Matt nodded and headed over to the bar.

Laura and Caroline followed Matt's progress and saw Stefan push a tiny bottle of vervain to his side, which Matt grabbed along with a coffee cup. Knowing Matt had the vervain to spike Sage and Finn's drink, Laura and Caroline turned their attention back to listening in on their conversation, ready for their moment to strike.

"How many people have you turned?" Finn asked.

"I don't know. A lot." Sage shrugged. "Don't judge me, Finn, you turned me." She pleaded.

"Exactly Sage, I turned you. My passion overtook my morals." Finn admitted.

"My passions overtake my morals on a daily basis. It's called living life to the fullest." Sage told him.

At that moment both Caroline's and Laura's phones vibrated. They both checked the simultaneously, seeing that it was a group text message from Damon saying _Get ready_.

A waitress arrived at Finn and Sage's table and placed two tequila shots in front of them.

"Finally." Sage smiled as suddenly Damon got up from the bar and headed towards the door.

"Oh, thanks." Sage said to the waitress who smiled and left. Sage raised her shot glass. "To living life to the fullest." She said as Finn raised his glass and clinked it against hers.

"To living life." Finn agreed; they both laughed as they licked the salt from their hand and knocked back their shots in one.

Suddenly their laughter stopped as they spat their drinks back up and started to choke.

"Oh, what the hell?" Sage cried.

"Vervain." Finn growled as they turned their heads and saw Damon at the main entrance, just about to leave, wearing a he grin on his face.

Stefan must have said something as they both turned their heads towards the fire exit where Stefan was stood with a smile on his face. Sage got up and went after Damon, while Finn got up to follow Stefan. However, suddenly he crumpled up in pain and put his hand to his leg, pulling out a small syringe and slamming it down on the table. He lifted his head to the direction of where it had come from, but Meredith was already gone. Laura turned to Caroline, who cocked her head in the direction of the restroom.

Stefan opened the door to the fire exit and Finn followed. There obviously wasn't much vervain in the syringe, only enough to weaken him enough to put them on equal footing with the Original.

Laura and Caroline got up and followed, by the time they got outside, they saw Stefan tussling with Finn, trying to get him with the stake, but at that moment Sage turned up and pushed Stefan away from Finn; Stefan dropped the stake and it fell down the stairs.

In all of the mayhem, Laura couldn't see Damon, she just hoped he'd managed to evade her, because she would be able to kill him with one hand tied behind her back.

"Finn, the stake!" Sage cried out as Finn ran down the stairs to grab the stake.

It was at that moment, Damon decided to show up with a dart-gun in his hand. He shot one of the syringes, which hit Sage, knocking her back. Just as Finn was about to grab the stake, the other door opened, and Matt burst out with a crossbow in his hand. He shot an arrow, which hit Finn in the stomach, causing him to double up in pain. That was when Laura saw the opportunity to kill Finn, but she wasn't close enough.

"Stefan, the stake." She cried as Stefan grabbed the stake and plunged it into Finn's heart.

"No!" Sage screamed, as she rushed down the stairs to Finn's side. Matt slid back back in the Grill and closed the door, while Laura watched on, while Sage cried as she watched Finn die, stroking his face as his skin turned grey and the veins crept all over his body. Damon looked down from the top of the steps, the crossbow at his side and nodded for Laura to leave. She wanted to, but her feet seemed to be glued to the ground as she watched the tragedy of Finn's death unfold in front of her.

"Finn, no." Sage sobbed as Finn's body set on fire. At that moment, Stefan pushed Laura back inside the Grill and out the main entrance.

"Elijah was wrong." Stefan said angrily. "She's not dead." He smirked and suddenly disappeared.

"We need to leave, now!" Came Damon's voice from behind Laura turned around; when she saw he was alive, she threw her arms around his neck and quickly kissed him on the lips.

"I thought you were dead." She cried.

"Not yet." Damon shook his head and smiled. "But we will be if we stay here another minute." He said as he ushered her to his car and drove them back to the Salvatore boarding house.

When they got back, Stefan was packing a bag full of weapons and Caroline was trying to stop him.

"Don't Stefan, it's too dangerous." Caroline cried.

"What's going on?" Damon asked.

"Sage didn't die, which mean Elijah lied. There's no reason not to kill Klaus." Stefan told them before turning to Damon. "You in brother?" he asked.

"Absolutely!" Damon grinned.

"Damon no!" Laura protested.

"Stay with Caroline. I'll call you when it's over." Stefan told Laura.

"Damon, Stefan, stop. Klaus is stronger than you, we need a plan." Laura pleaded. "You can't just walk into the lion's den without one.

"What we need is for Klaus to be dead." Stefan said sternly.

"He's right." Damon agreed. "But so is Elena, we need to whip up an actual plan before we do this." He said.

"Fine brother. You stay here, I'll get rid of Klaus myself." Stefan shrugged and began to walk off.

Damon rolled his eyes and glanced over apologetically to Laura before following Stefan. Knowing Damon was only doing this to keep Stefan safe, and desperate to at least delay them until Sage arrived and died, proving that Elijah was right, she ran up to Stefan, grabbed him and turned him around.

"Stefan, stop it! You're acting on anger!" Laura shouted at him.

"Anger gets things done, Elena!" Stefan yelled back.

"Or it'll get you killed! It'll get Damon killed along with you." Laura cried, tears forming in her eyes.

"Klaus does not get to survive this. Not after everything he took from me." Stefan growled, walking out of the door and slamming it shut, causing Laura to flinch.

"We'll come up with something." Damon promised Laura as he rubbed her arms and kissed her on the forehead before turning to follow Stefan, just as Caroline joined them in the foyer.

"I miss well-adjusted Stefan." Caroline sighed.

Suddenly, the door flew open, and Stefan was thrown through it, landing in the parlor as Sage walked into the house.

"Ding dong!" Sage said angrily.

Laura backed away as Caroline got ready attack her, but Sage threw her to the ground with minimal effort.

"I'm not here for you. I'm here for him." Sage hissed, her eyes on Stefan as Laura ran to the front door, but Troy appeared out of nowhere and blocked her path.

"I don't think so." Troy shook his head and grabbed her.

"Don't you fucking dare hurt her!" Damon snarled at Troy and stopped, as Troy had one hand on Laura's chin, ready to snap Laura's neck if Damon came any closer. In the meantime, Sage approached Stefan.

"I had to kill him, Sage." Stefan told her.

"Oh, you remember me." Sage nodded and kicked Stefan; he flew through the air and into a chair, destroying it. "Good. Then you know I like to go all ten rounds." Sage scowled.

"Stefan!" Damon yelled.

"Don't worry, you're next." Sage smirked momentarily, but suddenly she started to cough, and her nose began to bleed.

Everyone stopped and looked at Sage, as she suddenly started to look extremely pale.

"Sage?" Troy frowned.

Sage's struggles allowed Stefan to get to his feet. Trying to regain the upper hand, Sage threw a punch at Stefan, but she had lost her strength and Stefan grabbed her fist and threw her to the ground, where she began to cough up blood.

"Troy, help me!" Sage begged as Troy released Laura and rushed over to Sage to help her. However, before he got there. he leaned over and started to cough up blood as well.

"What is happening to me?" Sage whispered, as she suddenly went limp, her skin turned grey and dark veins appeared. Moments later the same had happened to Troy.

"She just died!" Laura said sadly as Damon rushed towards her and held her in his arms.

"Are you okay?" Damon whispered. "That douchebag didn't hurt you did her? He asked as Laura shook her head and smiled.

"So, Sage and this Troy guy die within an hour of Finn." Caroline frowned.

"Looks like Elijah was right." Laura said. "It just doesn't happen right away."

"Fuck!" Stefan cried, knocking over a table in the process, as Caroline edged up towards him,

"We'll get rid of him." She assured him, putting her hand on his arm and causing Laura to smile. Deep down, she wanted to get Stefan and Caroline together more quickly to give them more time together before Stefan died.

"We need to call Elijah." Laura sighed.

"I will." Damon said. "We can't kill Klaus, but once we've gotten rid of Esther and found Ric, we can activate plan B and at least get Klaus out of our hair for a hundred years or so." He said, as he pulled his phone from his pocket to call Elijah and tell him his brother was dead.


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

_Dear Diary_

_There are so many things I need to write, but I can only pick out the essential parts. The future events which need to be shaped have to be listed, just in case I do go back, that way they can be altered to ensure certain events play out a little differently._

_I need to just make one thing clear; I am not a murderous psychopath! I am just stating the obvious. Some people need to die in order to save other lives, and I am prioritizing what that should be, although I can only plan so far ahead._

_First of all, the hunter called Connor Jordan cannot be allowed to set foot near Mystic Falls. I don't want to inflict the curse on another vampire, nor do I want to trigger Jeremy's curse, therefore my suggestion is to kill Atticus Shane, he brought Connor to Mystic Falls, therefore, if he dies, Connor won't come, Jeremy's hunter's mark won't be triggered, he won't die, Bonnie won't die or need to become the anchor. Silas won't be raised, there will be no issues with Qetsiyah. Who knows, we might not get the travelers. But if we do, then everyone will just need to move out of Mystic Falls. Katherine won't take the cure, so she won't die and become the devil, Stefan won't die to save Damon, and hopefully Damon won't end up on the other side because of Bonnie not being the anchor. No Prison-World means no Kai. Whatever happens, don't go into the armories basement, it's a trap. Also, the old lady called Rayna Cruz is a murderous vampire hunter, stay well clear of her and don't be fooled by her appearance as she will suddenly become young again._

Laura stopped for a moment and read what she had written. She was going through the major plots which she could still remember. There were smaller ones, but they were either from seasons seven and eight, or they were so minor that they didn't matter.

After they killed Finn, Elijah asked Laura to make sure there was a list of plot points which needed to be addressed to try and keep everyone safe. Although Laura was making sure what she knew was covered, she didn't know what the consequences would be if none of these events took place. Hopefully Enzo would still survive, because she wanted him to end up with Bonnie. Laura wanted to do something to make sure Liz didn't get cancer, but there was only so much interference she could do, that one was out of her control.

For the next half an hour, Laura continued to scribble down notes in her diary, she then made a copy for Elijah. This had to be done today because the memories were getting hazier, although they hadn't been too affected over the last couple of days.

Elijah had asked to meet them at the Salvatore house that evening, he told them he had news for them This was why Laura was writing everything down she could with such haste. She knew there would be major consequences if all of these events were stopped, mainly Elena and Damon would never become human, and Hope Mikaelson might never exist, although she suspected, or hoped, that there was some magical twist of fate which would make that happen. However, her focus was eliminating the bad guys now before they had to face them in the future.

Laura placed Elijah's copy of the events in an envelope and put her diary away, satisfied she had dealt with the biggest villains. Once ready, she headed back to the boarding house to meet with Elijah to hear what he had to say.

When Laura arrived, she discovered Damon, Stefan, Bonnie, Caroline, and Elijah were already there, including the surprise reappearance of Abby at the meeting. As soon as Laura walked in, they all assembled in the library, where Laura sat close to Damon, as she didn't trust Abby's control at that point.

"Thank you all for agreeing to meet me at such short notice." Elijah smiled. "As you can see, Ms. Bennett has rejoined us, as she has much to tell the group." He added looking at Abby, who nodded back, all the while Bonnie scowled at her mother.

"What's going on?" Laura asked.

"Yes Abby, why did you leave?" Bonnie folded her arms.

"Ms. Bennett and I made a deal." Elijah told them. "I have many witches who I am in contact with, some who we are mutually connected to." He smiled at Abby.

"We needed to know what Esther's capabilities would be, and for how long, since she is no longer drawing magic from the Bennett bloodline." Abby told them. "I left like I did as I had to go alone. If anyone else had gone, Esther would've become suspicious. I was the only one who could leave." She said sadly. "I'm sorry Bonnie. But I couldn't tell anyone what I was up to. It is a matter of life and death." She said.

Bonnie nodded in understanding, although she still wasn't too happy about it. "How come I couldn't find you?" she asked.

"Lucy put a blocking spell on me." Abby told her. "It wasn't to block you Bonnie, it was to prevent Esther from finding me."

"So, you didn't just bail on us?" Caroline asked.

"The less I knew what you were planning, the better, just in case Finn was following me." Abby said. "Finn is, or was an Original, and could compel me if anything went wrong. Keeping me out of the plan was the best way forward." She said.

"So, what did you learn." Stefan frowned.

"Esther's capabilities are now severely weakened, restricting her magic, although still stronger than a lot of witches." Abby relayed her findings. "To create powerful magic, she can only do it with help from and external source."

"Like celestial events?" Damon asked.

"That." Abby nodded. "But depending on her plans, a celestial event might not be enough."

"What do you mean, depending on her plans?" Caroline asked.

"Now Finn is gone, the only person who is probably an ally, is Mr. Saltzman." Abby took a deep breath. "He's not capable of taking on an Original, not if he's human." She said.

"Even a solitary vampire would struggle to take on an Original." Laura frowned.

"A normal vampire, yes." Abby nodded. "But she has every ingredient to make another Original." She looked at Laura. "The key ingredient is doppelganger blood." She said. "As long as she doesn't deplete her magic too much, she could create one more Original, although I think that would probably kill her." She shrugged.

"Are you saying Elena is in danger?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know how much blood she'll require." Abby said. "But I don't think she's in too much danger herself. However, if Esther gets hold of her, we are the ones who are in danger." She said.

"I suggest round the clock protection." Elijah looked to the group; to which Stefan rolled his eyes. "I take it that is a problem?" Elijah asked him.

"I really don't want to be around Elena right now." Stefan glanced over at Laura, before casting his eyes down.

"I'll do it." Damon offered.

"You are going to have to put your personal feelings to one side." Elijah chided Stefan. "The lives of everyone in this room are at stake, there is no room for petty jealousy." He said.

"Speaking of stakes." Damon frowned. "Even if Esther did turn Ric, he can't kill you without a white oak stake, which he doesn't have, because we have them all here." He shrugged. "If we burn them now, then he won't have a weapon to kill you."

"That is not strictly true." Elijah sighed. "Mayor Lockwood spoke to Klaus a little earlier. It turns out the sign for Wickery Bridge has gone missing. It was being restored as joint project between the historical society and Mystic Falls high school history department." He said. "It was also made of white oak."

"How do you know it was white oak?" Stefan asked.

"Your friend, Mr. Saltzman was the one in charge of the restoration." Elijah shrugged.

"And you think Ric took it." Laura frowned.

"It was being kept in his apartment I believe. My brother went to look for it and found it was missing." Elijah studied his fingernails. "My mother has almost everything she needs to create a monster to destroy all of us. The only way to stop her is to prevent her getting her hands on the lovely Elena." He said. "She is the last ingredient."

Laura remembered Esther pretended to be Rebekah to fool everyone to get hold of the stake, and although she couldn't tell them that, if she dropped enough of a hint, she might be able to get either Elijah, Bonnie or Abby to pick up on what she was suggesting, therefore she had to give it a go.

"How do we know you're not Esther?" Laura asked Abby. "I mean Klaus can do the body jump thing with the help of witches, surely Esther is capable of the same thing." She said. "Or does that require too much magic?" she asked.

"Find Jamie." Abby replied. "Get him to ask me anything. If Esther were in this body, it doesn't mean she would know anything about my life." She said.

"That is correct." Elijah agreed. "And Elena, I think it is an excellent point to bring up." He said.

"Could she jump into the body of a man?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"I don't see why not." Elijah nodded. "However, I doubt she would as she may find having a man's body a little, awkward." He frowned.

"I can imagine." Caroline agreed, as if understanding what Elijah meant. "I mean, if a man jumped into a woman's body and had to put a bra on for the first time, they would be completely clueless, it would be hilarious." She smiled. "So, I guess the other way around also has it's issues." She said.

"Precisely." Elijah swallowed uncomfortably.

"So, the chances are that if Esther does body jump, it will be into a woman's body." Damon raised an eyebrow.

"I'll take you back home, and we'll talk to Jamie." Bonnie offered. "That way, we can quiz Abby, and if she is Esther, she won't find out what we're up to. If she isn't you can bring us up to speed later." She suggested.

"I think that would be wise." Elijah nodded as Bonnie and Abby left to check Abby's identity.

Laura got up in frustration, she wanted Esther dead, gone and unable to turn Ric. They would have to work on getting Ric back once Esther was dead. But in the meantime, they needed to come up with an alternative plan for preventing it from happening. That was when Laura had an idea.

"How many hybrids does Klaus need?" Laura asked. "Or how many werewolves are there for him to turn?"

"What does this have to do with anything?" Damon asked.

"Everything!" Laura stood up and ran her fingers through her hair. "Don't you get it? Again, I'm the key to all of this. All of this doppelganger shit, I want out!" she cried as she put her hands in her face. Suddenly she felt strong arms around her shoulders and Damon's scent washed over her as he pulled her into his chest.

"It's not that bad." Damon whispered.

"Yes, it is." Laura disagreed, looking into his blue eyes. "Take me out of the equation and Esther is no longer a threat." She said sadly.

"Elena, no." Damon shook his head. "Whatever you're thinking, don't. You've got Jeremy to consider." He warned.

"That's why I want to make a deal with Klaus." Laura said as she turned to Elijah.

"What kind of deal?" Damon asked, letting Laura go.

"If he wants my blood, let him have it." She said. "Take as much as possible in what little time we have left. Would feeding me his blood replenish mine between donations?" she asked.

"It would take about half an hour to work." Elijah nodded.

"Let's hope twenty-four liters of blood will be enough." Laura sighed.

"What are you doing Elena?" Caroline cried; eyes wide with shock.

"I'm going to let Klaus drain me." Laura told them. "I'll let him replenish my blood supply for a day. After that he can drain my body until I'm dead." She lowered her eyes.

"You can't die." Damon shook his head. "No Elena, you don't want that." He said.

"I didn't." Laura agreed, stroking Damon's face. "But I remember someone once saying, 'If you want to be with someone forever, then you have to live forever.' Do you remember?" she smiled at Damon, who nodded sadly.

"You'd turn?" Stefan spat in disgust.

"To be with Damon, forever?" Caroline grimaced. "Did you not listen to anything I told you about Damon?" she cried. "He only wants you for sex, once he's bored, he'll throw you out like garbage." She looked at Damon in disgust.

"If Klaus has enough blood and agrees to it, he'll be the one who turns me." Laura said. "That way he wouldn't be a threat to anyone." She said. "If he has plenty of blood, he can turn lots of wolves into vampires."

"I doubt he'll ever have enough blood." Elijah shook his head.

"It's worth a shot though, isn't it?" Laura asked excitedly. "I'd be dead before he can drain my whole body, so the magic would still work. I'd still turn." She said.

Elijah sighed and nodded. "Yes, it would work." He said.

"And wouldn't it be a fairly painless death?" Laura asked.

"Yes." Elijah agreed.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Laura looked around at everyone. "Kill me, and Esther has lost her weapon of mass vampire destruction. Klaus stops being a pain in the ass, and hopefully leaves Mystic Falls. We save Ric, and everyone is happy."

"Elena, you said you never wanted to turn." Stefan shook his head. "You wouldn't turn for me." He added, looking hurt. "You won't have a chance to have a family like you wanted." He said.

"And how exactly am I going to have children with Damon?" Laura frowned.

"You're looking at this through rose-tinted glasses Elena." Caroline shook her head. "You thought Stefan was your soulmate, and that lasted, what? Seven months. You can't change your mind about this. Once you're a vampire, it's permanent. You can't change back. Do you really have that much faith in your five-minute relationship with Damon to believe that it is worth giving up your humanity for?" Caroline turned to Damon. "Have you compelled her" she folded her arms.

"I knew nothing about this." Damon shook his head, before turning to Laura. "I will love you whether you are human or vampire, you know that. But don't do this to be with me." He said. "Even if we spend an eternity together, I'm not enough to replace what you could have had." He said softly.

"I can still lead a normal life." Laura smiled. "I can still go to college, get a career. Hey, I might even do something useful with my vampire powers." She smirked.

"You are too maternal to give up the chance of having children." Caroline cried out. "And what happens when you and Damon inevitably break up?" she asked.

"What makes you think we'd break up?" Laura asked.

"Bedroom skills can only get him so far." Caroline hissed. "Being good in bed, does not automatically make him a good boyfriend. I should know!" she said.

"Well Blondie, there is one difference between you and Elena." Damon glared at her. "I was using you to get to Elena. I didn't love you." He said.

"He'll be unfaithful!" Caroline stated.

"You really don't know me, do you?" Damon shook his head. "When I thought Katherine was stuck in that tomb under the church, I stayed celibate for the first forty-eight years. That was how loyal I was." He snarled.

"What changed it?" Caroline asked.

"Sage convinced me that Katherine would not only understand but would have wanted me to… hone my skills while she was still in the tomb." Damon told her.

"Sex has nothing to do with this!" Laura yelled. "It is my choice. I want to save my friends. I can either die or turn. It is up to me." She said.

"Would you choose to turn if Esther wasn't trying to kill all vampires?" Elijah asked.

"Not yet, no." Laura shrugged. "I'd have wanted to wait another couple of years. But I would have made the same decision eventually. Vampires are never going to be out of my life, and I'm always going to be a magnet for homicidal witches because I'm the doppelganger and my blood is magical. I don't want to be the doppelganger anymore. I just think my life would actually be more normal if I became a vampire." She said.

"So, it's not just about me?" Damon asked. "I don't want to be the reason you wanted to turn." He said.

Laura shook her head. "Ever since Stefan left and I started to know what my blood was capable of; I've thought more and more about it." She said as she turned to Damon. "You were just the icing on the cake." She smiled.

"Only if you're sure." Damon agreed.

"I've thought about this a lot lately." Laura said. "Since before anything happened between us. You had the right idea trying to turn me when Klaus wanted to use my blood in the sacrifice. We wouldn't be having this conversation now if I hadn't have been so blind. But what is done is done." She turned to Elijah. "We need to talk to Klaus. See if he'll agree to this." She said, looking around at the people in the room who were still shocked by her choice.

Laura knew Elena didn't want to become a vampire, therefore, she hoped she'd put on a good enough performance to convince them of Elena's reasons. And from the way they were looking at her, she suspected they'd bought it. Elena was a martyr, and this was typical behavior. What had changed since Klaus turned into a hybrid, was Jenna's death, with the potential of losing Ric. Elena was protective of Jeremy, and she wouldn't want to leave him alone. These, in Laura's opinion, were good enough reasons to convince Elena's friends that it was what she really wanted. What Laura couldn't tell them, was that she was scared of what Esther would do to her if she didn't turn, because her disappearing memories of her family, meant she was no longer sure she actually wanted to go home.

"Are you absolutely certain?" Elijah asked.

"Call Klaus!" Laura demanded. "I want him to be the one responsible for turning me." She insisted.

"You could have my blood." Damon suggested.

"No." Laura shook her head, hoping she wasn't going to offend Damon. "Klaus has to be entirely responsible for turning me. That way he can't blame anyone else except Esther." She said.

"Fine, if you are really sure." Damon sighed, as Stefan stormed upstairs, clearly fuming with Laura's decision.

Caroline shook her head in disappointment. "I don't think you've thought this through." She said before looking at Damon. "Can't you get her to change her mind?" she asked.

"This is up to Elena." Damon said.

"Do you want her to turn?" Caroline frowned.

"Yes and no." Damon looked down. "No because she won't get the life she wanted. But for selfish reasons I do. I want to be with her forever." He said. "Look Blondie, you need to talk to Stefan. He listens to you. Calm him down."

"I'm not going to say I agree with this decision." Caroline stuck her chin in the air. "But, if I can't talk you out of it, I'll do what I can to help. Even if it means making sure Stefan is okay. Because right now, he's heartbroken." She said.

"I know Caroline." Laura nodded. "It was always inevitable. You go to him, calm him down. I'll speak to him after that." She said.

"Okay." Caroline nodded as she followed in Stefan's footsteps.

"I see you haven't challenged this decision." Damon looked at Elijah.

"I trust Elena knows her own mind well enough." Elijah smiled. "I'll call Klaus and let him know we are on our way, and we have a deal for him." He said as he got his phone out.

Laura turned to Damon. "Thank you." She smiled.

"What for?" Damon frowned.

"For supporting me." She said. "But I just need one favor from you." She frowned.

"What's that?" Damon asked.

"I need you to hold my hand when I die." Laura smiled sadly. "That way, I know I'll be safe."

"Of course." Damon swallowed, clearly struggling to hold back the tears. "I'll be right beside you every step." He agreed.

"Klaus is willing to meet us." Elijah interrupted them. "I haven't told him the specifics of the deal, but I have explained it will be to stop mother." He said. "He wants to meet us at the mansion."

"Well then, let's go." Laura agreed, looking at Damon.

"Let's go." He said as they left to go and meet Klaus.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

On their way to the Mikaelson mansion, Laura managed to pass the envelope she had with her, containing the major future events she hoped to prevent from happening, to Elijah. Stefan and Caroline had opted to stay behind, although for differing reasons. Stefan was still furious with Klaus as he blamed losing Elena on him, and Caroline wanted to avoid Klaus wanting to get to know her better. Instead, Stefan was moving some of his things over to Caroline's house, because once Laura had completed her transition, she was going to stay at the Salvatore boarding house until she was fully in control. That way, when she asked Jeremy to invite her in over the telephone, she knew she was safe to allow him to come back home.

The other reason Laura wanted to stay at the boarding house was to force Stefan to stay with Caroline. She hoped their friendship would solidify further, and maybe turn into romance a little earlier than when it happened in the show. This would give Stefan and Caroline more time together than in the show, although her future pregnancy might change that. That was if Caroline did get pregnant. A thought which Laura immediately regretted, because as soon as she started mentally playing the game of consequences, her head began to hurt.

Eventually Damon and Laura were stood in the Mikaelson library with Elijah, waiting for Klaus.

"You okay?" Damon asked as Laura screwed her eyes up from the ensuing headache.

Laura sighed. "Yeah, just a little stressed. I'm just worried Klaus might say no." she said.

"You don't have to do this." Damon told her.

"Yes, I do." Laura looked at him and smiled, before gently giving him a peck on the lips. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll just fall asleep and wake up in transition. It won't hurt." She assured him.

"The thought of watching you die…" Damon shook his head. "I... I… just…" he couldn't get the words out.

"But I'm not really dying." Laura rubbed his arm. "Remember, I've already done it once, when Klaus tried to break the curse. It wasn't too bad." She joked.

"What's all this about dying I hear?" Klaus entered the room full of his usual gusto.

"Hear us out brother." Elijah said calmly.

"Would you like to see something?" Klaus asked with an evil grin on his face.

"What?" Laura frowned.

"I released my brother Kol." Klaus told her. "It was under the condition he made a friend." He said, as he video called Kol. "Kol. How's the weather up there in Mile High City? And how's our friend? May I see him?" he asked

"Sure." Kol's voice replied as Klaus turned the phone around to show Laura and Damon.

Klaus walked over to Laura and Damon and held up his phone to show them the video. On it was Jeremy playing with a dog in a park, something which brought back a brief feeling of familiarity.

"There's Jeremy, playing fetch with his new puppy. Oh, isn't that just the most adorable thing you've ever seen?" Klaus cooed as he pulled the phone away. "Thank you Kol, we'll be in touch." He said as he hung up.

"The problem we have Niklaus, is that Jeremy will be far safer from our brother if Elena does not die." Elijah intervened.

"What do you mean?" Klaus asked, pouring himself and Elijah a drink. "Damon?" he asked as Damon nodded.

"You tasked me to deal with our mother." Elijah said.

"Indeed." Klaus agreed.

"Then you need to trust what I have to say." Elijah took a deep breath. "She has white oak, and lots of it."

"How?" Klaus frowned. "I thought you lot were supposed to destroy it." He hissed at Damon.

"Oh, we did." Damon nodded. "We just didn't know there was more." He shrugged.

"Where is it?" Klaus asked, his voice raising a notch, telling Laura he was getting angry.

"Good question." Elijah said. "Finn is dead, and the white oak was destroyed from the bridge itself. However, one part of the bridge had already been removed for restoration… The sign itself." He explained.

"And who was restoring the sign?" Klaus asked. "I will send one of my hybrid's to remove it from them, along with their heart." He said with a growl.

"We think Ric took it." Laura said. "Except we don't know where Ric is, because he's under the influence of your mother." She cast her eyes down.

"Has nobody tried looking for him?" Klaus cried.

"Esther has put a very powerful blocking spell on him." Elijah explained. "I've had multiple witches try to use various types of locator spells, but to no avail." He shook his head.

"I'll have some of my hybrids sniff him out." Klaus suggested.

"Don't you think mother would have thought of that?" Elijah asked. "She's cloaking him from us. She has manipulated him, to turn him into a vampire hunter." He said.

"And should I be quaking in my boots?" Klaus laughed. "A mere human would stand no chance against me." He shook his head.

"Human no." Elijah agreed. "But what if she wanted to create another vampire, someone to replace Mikael." He said.

"She hates vampires, why would she do that?" Klaus frowned, for the first time a look of concern crept over his face.

"She tried to link you together so she could kill you." Laura said. "She was going to kill Finn so that you would all die. But Abby turning prevented her plan from working."

"She would need something stronger than us." Klaus disagreed. "Otherwise we could always stake him." He said.

"The only reason you're able to die using the white oak stake, is because nature itself created a balance." Elijah explained. "It could be entirely possible that mother could create a balance which would kill him once he turned, but by using another method. Meaning the white oak would be entirely useless on him. I spoke to some witches, creating an Original vampire is within the realms of her magic. Creating an immortal Original vampire would be too powerful, even with a celestial event. Therefore, it is entirely possible she could create an Original who is superior to us in abilities and strength. However, he would become mortal." He said.

"What kind of spell would do that?" Klaus asked.

"If she tied the life of the vampire to that of a human." Elijah explained. "While the human lives, the vampire continues to live without aging. Once the human dies, so does the vampire." He said.

"So, we'll just kill the human." Klaus shrugged.

"Which is what we're asking you to do." Laura smiled.

"Why would she use you?" Klaus asked.

"To stop you making more minions, to prevent more doppelgangers, because she's got to use her blood for the rituals. Plus, I think she might be little jealous of Elena's hair." Damon added.

Klaus thumped his fist on the wet bar next to him, causing the glasses and decanters to rattle. He then started to frantically pace the room.

"How can you be certain she is doing this?" Klaus asked. "She could be doing any spell." He said. "She might not need Elena."

"The ingredients she needs for the spell are the silver bowl she used when she created us." Elijah told him. "It has gone."

"What?!" Klaus exploded with rage.

"It went missing the night of the ball, at the same time our mother disappeared." Elijah sighed.

"Fuck!" Klaus spat. "I'm going to fucking kill her." He growled. "I will rip her heart out…" he started. "And you…" he rushed up to Laura, his face was so close to her, she could feel his warm breath. "I will keep you here, under my protection. That way she can't touch you." He smirked.

"It won't work." Elijah shook his head. "Her magic is disappearing, but she can still body jump. She may choose someone close to us. Elena is the key to any weapon she chooses. Her blood is the only thing powerful enough to destroy us." He sighed.

"So why come to me to die?" Klaus asked. "Surely there are people who would gladly see you dead. I believe Katerina might be at the top of that list." He smirked.

"Because I don't actually want to die." Laura told him. "So, my only option is to turn." She said.

"So why don't you ask one of your boyfriends to help?" Klaus raised an eyebrow. "Don't you trust them?"

"I trust them." Laura nodded. "I just don't trust you not to kill all of us in retaliation for me turning, like you did with Katherine." She said.

Klaus nodded in agreement. "You are quite correct." He smiled. "What makes you think me turning you would be any different?" he asked.

"Because I'm willing to strike a deal." Laura said.

"Go on." Klaus raised an eyebrow.

"We googled the upcoming celestial events." Damon told him. "There isn't anything until the night after tomorrow."

"Which means Esther cannot draw power from it until then, meaning she cannot create another Original until then." Elijah continued.

"I know you want my blood to help you create hybrids, and you want me to have lots of little babies so that there will be a new doppelganger in a few hundred years." Laura frowned. "But your mother is never going to allow that to happen. I am the last Petrova doppelganger. So that means you need to take as much blood from me as you can before Esther tries to do the spell. I need to be dead and in transition by tomorrow night. That way she can't link Ric to me, and she can't create the spell." She explained. "I am prepared to continuously give blood from now until then. I just need your blood to speed up the healing process after every liter of blood is take. That way, you should be able to take enough of my blood to create a few hundred hybrids."

"So, I keep giving you my blood to help you recover, meaning you can continue giving blood up until the point where you die and become a vampire." Klaus said thoughtfully. "My blood will help speed up the process a little, but we can speed it up even further if we give you blood, while taking it. Along with a saline drip to help matters." He said, continuing to think out loud. "I could infuse my blood into the blood we give to you, meaning I can take between two and three liters an hour, by the time we are finished, I should have a hundred liters. "That would be enough for ten thousand hybrids. I think that should be enough." He nodded with a smile. "We have a deal." He grinned.

"So, you'll let me donate, using your blood, and when the time comes, I become a vampire. You leave me, my friends and family alone, and we can all live in peace?" she asked.

"Just keep your brother from killing my hybrids and make him stop his little revenge plan." Klaus said to Damon.

"Oh, don't worry about that." Damon said. "I think he's transferred his anger to me." He grimaced.

"And me." Laura added.

"Oh, I see." Klaus nodded. "Well I'm sure my sister can keep him happy." He smirked.

"If I were you, I'd be careful around Rebekah." Laura said. "We don't know if she's really Rebekah or Esther." She reminded him.

"Well I can't play nurse for the next thirty-six hours." Klaus rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry, that's my job." Damon smiled. "Just lock us in a room, with all of the creature comforts and blood. Then in thirty-six hours, you'll have your stash and Elena will be a vampire." He added.

"Tyler!" Klaus called out as Laura frowned, forgetting Tyler was back.

Tyler walked into the room and looked at Laura and Damon in shock, before turning to Klaus. "You called?" he said.

"I want you to get a hundred empty blood bags from the storage facility." Klaus instructed. "I also want fifty liters of blood taken up to the art room." He said. "I will get a nurse to rig up the facility in there." He said to Laura, before turning back to Tyler. "I will also need a refrigerator taken up there to house the blood."

Tyler looked at Laura and Damon with trepidation, however, Laura smiled at him encouragingly.

"Okay." Tyler nodded and left the room.

"A bit impertinent that one if you ask me." Klaus shook his head. "If you'd like to follow me, I'll show you to the art room." He said as he led them out of the library, up the stairs and down a hallway. Eventually they arrived at a door. "This room is impenetrable." Klaus explained.

"We're going to need to get Bonnie to make me a daylight ring." Laura said to Damon.

"She's not going to like it." Damon shook his head as he took a beautiful lapis lazuli ring out of his pocket.

"I'll take it to her." Elijah offered, as Damon handed him the ring. "I'm sure she'll understand your motives." He briefly smirked at Laura before regaining his usual composure. "Well I shall leave you here. It has been a pleasure knowing the human you. I shall be interested to see how vampirism affects you." He winked as he took Laura's hand and kissed it before leaving.

Laura and Damon followed Klaus into the room, which had no windows. Laura immediately recognized it from the episode where Elena was being was under the spell of the Hunter's Curse. There was a big bed in the middle of the room, which looked extremely comfortable. If it wasn't for what they were here for, Laura would have suggested she and Damon try it out. Right at that moment, there was a flurry of activity as people were bringing in the items required for Laura's stay.

A nurse rigged up the blood for the transfusion, showing Damon how to change the blood bags. To ensure Klaus was giving Laura his blood, he had his blood drained in front of them, and it was hooked up to be injected into Laura every half hour. A heart monitor was brought in to ensure Laura didn't give too much at the wrong time. It would also be key to letting them know she was dead.

There were three refrigerators in the room. One filled with blood to give to Laura, and one to store the blood Laura gave to Klaus. The other one was for food and drink, to keep Damon and Laura fed over the coming day. There was even an extra blood bag for Laura to complete her transition. Klaus also provided them with a TV, a radio, a laptop and some boardgames. His generosity was explained by pointing out the security cameras and warning them he wanted no sex videos. Eventually everyone left, and it was just Laura and Damon, all alone, in the room, where they were going to stay until Laura turned into a vampire.

Eventually Laura was all trussed up and laying on the bed, blood, going in one arm, and coming out of the other. She felt uncomfortable with all of the needles stuck in her, but she was out of options, and she needed to stop Esther. She was also glad Klaus had seen sense. Right now, Elijah and Klaus were discussing what else needed to be done to stop Esther, and according to Damon, who was listening in on the conversation, Abby and Bonnie had turned up to help with their witch knowledge. As they hadn't been separated, Bonnie was allowed to visit Laura, as long as Damon was around.

"Hey." Bonnie smiled as she poked her head around the door. "Can I come in?" she asked.

"Come on in Bonnie." Laura grinned, while Damon shifted uncomfortably.

Bonnie closed the door and walked over to the bed, before sitting on it. "Made you this." She said, handing over the ring Damon had gotten her.

"Thank-you Bonnie." Laura smiled.

"Are you here to yell at Elena too?" Damon asked.

"No." Bonnie shook her head.

"Why? I thought you hated vampires." Damon frowned as Bonnie and Laura exchanged awkward glances.

"I did." Bonnie nodded. "My best friend is a vampire and my mom is a vampire. I'm used to it now. I wish Elena didn't have to do this, but there's no other way to stop Esther. And I think Esther would try to kill Elena eventually anyway, just to be safe. I take it Caroline and Stefan were less understanding." She raised an eyebrow.

"I don't think they understand my change of heart." Laura sighed.

"Jenna and John are dead." Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Jeremy has nobody left. What did they expect? The Elena Gilbert I know will always sacrifice herself for her family and friends, but now they're gone, her situation is different." She assured them.

"They accused me of compelling her." Damon cast his eyes down and Bonnie frowned.

"My opinion is probably more neutral than Caroline's." Bonnie sighed. "She's always had a soft spot for Stefan, and with your history together, she just can't accept Elena choosing you over someone she cares about." She said.

"Well maybe Caroline should date Stefan." Laura said, to which Bonnie raised an eyebrow.

"I doubt it. Wolfboy is back." Damon shook his head.

"Tyler?" Bonnie asked, sounding surprised. "Caroline never mentioned anything." She said.

"I think he had to check in with his master first." Damon said sarcastically.

"But wasn't he…." Bonnie started but Damon shook his head frantically, putting his finger first to his lips and then his ear before pointing to the door, suggesting other vampires would hear her.

"… Wasn't he supposed to see Caroline about the decade dance?" Bonnie corrected herself.

"Oh, the decade dance." Laura sighed. "I forgot about that. What are we doing?" she asked, wondering if it had changed from the show.

"Well, it was supposed to be the seventies, but Caroline and Rebekah had an argument and it ended up being the twenties." She said.

"Ugh!" Damon rolled his eyes. "The seventies were so much more fun." He said as Klaus's head popped around the door.

"Visiting time is over." He said as Bonnie gave Laura a hug.

"See you on the other side." Bonnie smiled sadly before leaving.

Damon got up and changed the bloodbag which was already full of Laura's blood. She was feeling a little weaker, but then a shot of Klaus's blood entered her body, and she suddenly felt better.

"Wow, that stuff packs a punch." Laura smiled before kissing Damon. "Are you going to miss the human me?" she asked.

"Elena, you won't change that much." Damon promised. "It's just that everything will be heightened at first. Including your sex drive." He wiggled his eyebrows seductively.

"Does that always stay heightened?" Laura asked.

"Oh yeah." Damon nodded with a huge grin on his face. "It's the biggest perk. It also means no holding back. The downside is you'll need a stronger bed. Yours won't last five minutes with two vampires." He smirked.

Laura thought on, remembering Damon and Elena managed to break Damon's unbreakable bed, and decided he was right as hers was flimsy in comparison.

"You were holding back?" Laura asked.

"You are currently breakable." Damon smiled. "I would have killed you if I'd have unleashed my full potential." He shrugged.

Laura yawned. "I can't wait." She smiled. "I need some sleep." She said as Damon climbed into the bed next to her and wrapped his arms around her.

"You sleep, I'll keep an eye on you." He said as Laura snuggled into Damon's chest, listening to his heartbeat as she fell asleep.

Over the next twenty-four hours, Laura and Damon talked, laughed, cried, kissed and cuddled. At Elijah's request, Laura was treat to some first-class food, as it turned out that although vampires still enjoyed food, it didn't taste quite as good once they turned.

Eventually the time came for the transfusion to stop and for Laura to be drained until she died. She could see Damon's face harden as he attached the final bloodbag to her. She had already given a liter without blood and without the extra help of Klaus's blood. Now it was going to be a matter of minutes before she lost conscious.

"Elena, there's something I need to tell you." Damon said.

"What?" Laura asked weakly.

"I… I compelled you, twice." He admitted.

"Why? When?" Laura frowned.

"The first time was when we first met, before your parents died." Damon told her. "I just don't want it to be a surprise when you start to go through transition."

"And the second time?" Laura asked, his confession now made sense, as she'd had a niggly feeling about this for a while and knew this was definitely something she'd forgotten about.

"I compelled away the first time I told you I loved you." He said sadly as Laura started to feel extremely light-headed.

"It doesn't matter." She whispered. "Just as long as you still do." She said. "Tell me what you said."

Damon took her hand in his and squeezed tightly as the beeping of the heart monitor began to slow down. "I said, I love you Elena, I don't…." his voice trailed off as everything momentarily fell silent and the room turned dark.

Laura looked around and panicked, wondering if she were dead or not, when suddenly a light came on and she took in her surroundings. She was sat in a waiting room, which had cream walls and three doors. All around the room were chairs with a couple of tables filled with magazines. Confused, Laura was about to stand up when one of the doors opened, and a dog ran into the room and jumped into Laura's arms. She immediately recognized the dog.

"Rosie!" she cried, snuggling into the wriggling body of the dog.

Suddenly, Laura's memories came flooding back. Her life as a teacher, her memory of what she'd been doing that night. Her past, her family. As a result, tears welled up in her eyes. To make matters worse, it was at that moment she saw her parents walk through the door.

"Mom, dad?" Laura asked. "How are you here?" she looked around. "In fact, where is here?" she asked.

"Remember when we last spoke?" her dad asked as Laura nodded. "I told you a time would come when you had to make your choice between the Plane of Preparation, the home you have always known. Or you can return to Mystic Falls and live as you were supposed to live." He said.

"Why are you both here?" Laura asked.

"To make sure you make a choice you don't regret." Her mom smiled.

"I thought I would forget everything once I made my choice." Laura frowned.

"Eventually you will." Her mom nodded. "At first you will remember pretty much everything, except this conversation. You'll regain memories you lost over the past few weeks." She explained. "Then over the next year or so, they will start to fade a little. Eventually, you will think you had dreamt the entire thing and the name Laura Jennings will mean nothing to you." She said.

"So, I will miss you again." Laura sighed.

"Not for long." Her dad shook his head.

"And will I ever see you again?" Laura swallowed.

"We're witches." Her mom smiled. "We'll keep an eye on you. I might be around walking Rosie in the park. You'll think I look familiar, but that is all." She said. "Once you have fully embraced your life as Elena Gilbert, then we will prepare for our next doppelganger."

"How many have you raised?" Laura asked.

Her mom and dad looked at each other. "Fourteen." He mom said.

Laura's eyes widened with shock. "How old are you?" she asked.

"I'm nine hundred and sixty-six." Her mom said.

"I'm nine hundred and eighty." Her dad added.

"So, you don't really die." She frowned as the both shook their heads. "What happens to you if I go back to the Plane of Preparation." She asked.

"We stay there for a little longer, then die of some disease. We wait until you pass on, return to the Plane of Preparation and raise another doppelganger." Her mom said.

"And if I return to Mystic Falls, will I ever get the opportunity again to come back?" Laura asked; however, both of her parent shook their heads.

"You need to decide now." Her mother said. "Your body is preparing to wake on both sides."

"This door leads to Mystic Falls." Her dad pointed to the door on the left. "And the other goes home."

"Am I guaranteed to live if I go home?" Laura asked.

"For a time, yes." Her dad smiled. "But nobody is truly immortal."

Laura sat for a moment to think about her choices. Her time with her mother would be limited, however, her time with Damon had the potential to be eternal. Laura could choose new careers, a doctor, being a teacher again, even a gymnast if she wanted to. But her main problem was no longer seeing her mom or Rosie. She wasn't sure she could leave them again, although it would inevitably happen one day. She just didn't know whether she could face it so soon. On the other hand, being a vampire would be better than the aches and pains she was starting to get as she got older. Also, it did mean she'd never have to face the menopause. Laura began to weigh up the pro's and con's of her choice while holding on tight to Rosie.

"Have you made your choice?" her mom eventually asked.

"Yes." Laura smiled sadly. "I think so." She nodded, holding on tightly to Rosie, who sniffed and licked her face where the tears were running down her eyes. "I love you so much." She said to the dog as she nuzzled against her head like they always did. Laura had missed this, even if she hadn't been able to remember she missed it.

"Come here honey." Her mom opened her arms and Laura rushed into them, her eyes streaming with tears, while Rosie barked.

"Sweetheart. My little angel." Her dad wrapped his arms around them both. "You be good and look after yourself!" he told her as Laura nodded.

"I'll see you on the other side." Her mom said as Laura took in a deep sigh.

"Goodbye daddy." She said. "I wish you were there too."

"I'll always be in your heart." He smiled. "But it's time. You must choose the door. Home, or Mystic Falls." He said as her parents stood back. Her mom held Rosie in her arms while her dad had his arm around her mom's shoulder. She wished she could take a snapshot of this moment, but she knew her memory of it would fade over the next few months, and she would only ever think it was a dream.

Laura turned to the door she knew would lead her to the life she had chosen to live. She put her hand on the doorknob, closed her eyes, and turned it. As she pushed the door open, she felt warmth on her face. She opened her eyes and took a deep breath, and finally she was home.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura walked through the door and into a hospital room, where a woman was laying on a bed, linked up to what appeared to be a life support machine. Next to the bed sat a woman crying, as she held the hand of the patient. Laura walked over to them and looked closely, only to see her old body lying there, deathly pale, her blonde hair covering the pillow, tubes inserted into her body. The woman holding her hand was Laura's mom, sobbing desperately.

"I'm sorry Laura." Her mom whispered. "There's nothing they can do to help. They tried to stop the bleeding, but it was too late. Maybe if I'd have gotten there sooner…" she burst into tears.

A door opened and a doctor walked in and put her arm around Laura's mom's shoulder.

"It's time." The doctor told her mom, who nodded.

The doctor went through the procedure to turn off the ventilator and left the room, allowing Laura's mom the last few minutes alone with her daughter.

Just as the doctor left, another figure appeared in the room. This time it was the face of Elena Gilbert in front of her.

"Laura?" Elena smiled.

"You know me?" Laura frowned.

"Of course, you are me. Or will be." Elena replied.

"What's happening?" Laura asked as she noticed her body no longer breathing.

"Your body is dying." Elena told her.

Laura swallowed. "So, what happens now, to my body? To me? To you?" she shook her head, confused.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine." Elena assured her as she walked over to Laura's body. "I've got to go now." She said. "Just make sure you look after Jeremy for me, don't make the mistakes I would have made, and take care of Damon." She smiled.

"You know how your life would have worked out?" Laura asked as Elena smiled. "They showed me after you went into my body." She said.

"What happened to me?" Laura asked.

"You had an aneurysm." Elena told her. "You might have survived, but by the time your mom found you, it was too late." She said.

"When?" Laura frowned.

"Just last night." Elena said.

"But…" Laura started, taken aback by how long she'd been in Mystic Falls.

"Time moves differently on the Plane of Preparation." Elena told her.

"So, this isn't real?" Laura shook her head.

"For you, yes." Elena explained. "Which is why you are here, to say goodbye to yourself and your old life. You can move on with no regrets, because this would have been your fate had you have chosen the other door." She said, as the beeping of the heart monitor slowed to a stop, signaled her heart was no longer beating.

"Can I stay for a minute?" Laura asked.

"To watch yourself die?" Elena nodded. "Yeah, but after that you have to leave, otherwise you won't return to my body. You need to leave through that door, then, to complete the soul and body merge, you need to do what I'm about to do." Elena told her, pointing towards a door before sitting on the bed. "Thank-you Laura." She smiled as she lay down and disappeared into Laura's dying body. As her body disappeared, Laura felt an odd thudding sensation in her body.

"I love you baby." Laura's mom cried as the sound of a heart monitor flatlining rang out through the room.

"I love you too mom. Look after Rosie for me." Laura said to her mom, even though she knew she couldn't hear her, before starting to cry, as the woman doctor came back into the room. The doctor checked the pulse of Laura's dead body, which was already starting to look waxy.

"Goodbye Laura." Laura said to herself before turning around and walking through the door, back to Mystic Falls.

On the other side of the door was Klaus's art room, where Elena's dead body was laid out on the bed, the heart monitor giving off the same flatline sound as in the hospital room she'd just left. By her side sat Damon, his eyes trained on her, waiting for Elena, or Laura, to wake up.

Laura looked back to the door where she'd just come from, however, it had magically disappeared. Instead, a refrigerator, stockpiled with blood, stood in its place. Laura walked over to the bed and sat down. She took one more look around her and lay down, her being sinking back into Elena's body.

Laura opened her eyes and took in a deep breath. She was still in the same room in Klaus's mansion as she had been when she fell asleep. The only difference was everything now seemed brighter, more vibrant. She felt her hand being squeezed and looked up at Damon for what felt like the first time ever. His eyes were even bluer than she remembered. She could easily count every eyelash.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Damon smiled softly.

"Okay." Laura frowned. "Just a little disorientated." She said. "I just wanna go home for a bit."

"You can go home for the day. We can complete the transition when we get to mine." Damon agreed. "I want you to stay with me until you're fully under control. Then we'll tell Jeremy." He said.

"You just need some company in that huge bed of yours." Laura smirked.

"Me?" Damon looked at her innocently, before smirking. "Well I won't say no." he admitted.

"Neither will I." Laura giggled, as Damon called Klaus to let him know Laura was ready to leave.

Half an hour later they arrived at the Gilbert house. Laura still hadn't completed the transition as she wanted to make sure she had a few last items before temporarily moving out. Damon offered to wait downstairs, while Laura collected her things from the bathroom.

She opened a large bag on her bed and walked into the bathroom to get her shampoo, soap, razor and toothbrush. When she stepped back into her bedroom with her arms full, she saw Damon sat on her window seat.

"I thought you were waiting downstairs." Laura frowned. "And where's my bag?" she asked, as it was no longer on the bed.

"Cute PJ's." Damon said.

"I'm not wearing PJ's Laura frowned, when she suddenly heard Elena's voice from behind her.

"I'm tired, Damon." Elena said as Laura turned and saw herself in the middle of the moment Damon was about to compel Elena. She then realized his compulsion was wearing off and she stepped out of the scene, deciding to watch in unfold as it did in the show.

"I brought you this." Damon got up and walked over to Elena, holding out her necklace.

"I thought that was gone. Thank you." Elena said as she tried to take it from him, but he wouldn't give it to her. "Please give it back." She said hesitantly.

"I just have to say something." Damon lifted his hands up defensively.

"Why do you have to say it with my necklace?" Elena looked uncomfortable, as if she knew he was going to compel her.

"Well, because what I'm about to say is...probably the most selfish thing I have ever said in my life." Damon frowned.

"Damon, don't go there." Elena shook her head.

"No, I just have to say it once. You just need to hear it." Damon insisted. "I love you, Elena and it's because I love you that...I can't be selfish with you. Why you can't know this." He said sadly. "I don't deserve you, but my brother does." He told her as he kissed her on the forehead.

Damon stared into Elena's eyes. "God, I wish you didn't have to forget this, but you do." He compelled her as he shed a tear.

Laura saw Elena close her eyes as Damon disappeared through the window. When Elena opened her eyes once more, Damon was not only gone, but she was wearing her necklace. Elena touched her necklace and looked around her, confused by its sudden appearance. She sat down on her bed and looked at her necklace.

At that moment, the image filled Laura's head as if it were an actual memory and no longer a scene from the show. Laura had lived that moment, felt Elena's emotions, understood her fear of Damon compelling her, and knew of her confusion afterwards.

Suddenly Laura could see her bag on her bed once more. She emptied the contents of her arms into the bag and flopped down on her bed.

"Everything okay up there?" she heard Damon ask, his voice loud and clear, even though he had only said it in his normal voice.

"One of your compulsion's just came back." Laura told him as he suddenly appeared at her bedroom door.

"Which one?" Damon asked.

"The one where you told me you loved me." Laura smiled. "It was very sweet." She told him. "I thought you said the first time you compelled me was when we met." She frowned. "I'd have thought that would have come back first.

Damon shook his head. "I think they come back with the most recent first and the oldest one last." He told her.

"I can't wait." Laura laughed.

"Have you got everything?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"I haven't packed my sexiest underwear." Laura smirked.

"Well, I'll be the judge of that." Damon grinned as he opened the top drawer of her dresser. "I like…." He started, but everything suddenly went dark and his voice disappeared.

It was nighttime and Laura was stood in the middle of a road, which she recognized from being near Wickery Bridge. At first Laura thought she was alone, but then she saw Damon lying in the middle of the road, probably waiting for his next meal, or having another one of his existential crises. Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice, her own, or Elena's, which realistically was now her voice. Laura turned to the source of her voice and saw Elena on the phone, so she listened to the last part of the conversation, with the knowledge of what was going to happen next.

"I know Bonnie, you're right." Elena sighed. "You and my mom both are. I just can't bring myself to tell him. At least not tonight. I'll call you later." She said and hung up. At that moment, a very confused looking Damon appeared in front of the vision of Elena.

"Katherine." Damon said.

"No – um – I…" Elena looked behind her to make sure he wasn't talking to someone else. "I'm Elena."

"Oh, you – you just look..." Damon frowned. "I'm sorry, you just really remind me of someone. I'm Damon." He regained his composure.

"Not to be rude or anything, Damon, but it's kind of creepy that you're out here in the middle of nowhere." Elena looked around her.

"You're one to talk. You're out here all by yourself." Damon smirked.

"It's Mystic Falls. Nothing bad ever happens here." Elena scoffed, as Damon nodded. They fell silent for a moment when she saw Elena deciding to explain herself. "Got into a fight with my boyfriend." She sighed.

"About what? May I ask." Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Life, future, he's got it all mapped out." Elena said wistfully.

"And you don't want it?" Damon asked, already knowing the answer.

"I don't know what I want." Elena narrowed her eyes.

"Well, that's not true. You want what everybody wants." Damon said softly.

"What, mysterious stranger who has all the answers?" Elena laughed.

"Hm, well, let's just say I've been around a long time. I've learned a few things." Damon said cockily.

"So, Damon, tell me. What is it that I want?" Elena challenged him flirtatiously, as Damon moved closer towards her.

"You want a love that consumes you." Damon told her. "You want passion, an adventure, and even a little danger." He smiled.

"So, what do you want?" Elena asked, the question clearly surprising Damon, causing him to hesitate for a moment to think, however, the sound of a car horn blasted through the air.

Elena looked over her shoulder to the sound of the car. "It's my parents." she told him.

Damon moved closer to Elena so when she turned back around, his face was close to hers.

"I want you to get everything that you're looking for, but right now I want you to forget that this happened." Damon compelled her. "Can't have people knowing that I'm in town yet. Goodnight, Elena." He smiled sadly before disappearing into the night. Elena looked around her, seemingly confused, before turning towards the car and running to it.

Suddenly, once again Laura felt the memory inside her, as if she'd been there and experienced it. She could remember the smell of the bonfire from the party. The road was wet, and the smell of damp earth filled her nostrils. However, the most important smell Laura could remember was that of Damon. She closed her eyes and tried to remember the smell; however, she didn't need to use her imagination as the scent surrounded her.

"Elena." Laura heard Damon's voice.

She opened her eyes and looked up at his. She was lying down on the bed, while Damon was sat next to her, his arms wrapped around her, looking worried.

"What happened to that murderous vampire?" Laura raised an eyebrow. "Didn't seem too scary when I met him. In fact, he was downright sexy if you ask me." She smirked.

"I'm going to have to improve my bad boy reputation." Damon narrowed his eyes. "Can't have people thinking I'm nice now, can we?"

"Nice is overrated." Laura nodded. "You on the other hand…" she sat up and swung herself, so she was straddling Damon's hips. "…Are underrated." She pushed him back down on the bed. "I'm looking forward to being able to do that a little more forcefully." She smirked. "But this is not the right bed for that." She sat back up.

Damon looked out of the window. "And we need to get a move on." He told her. "You need to feed to complete the transition. And as you haven't been invited in here, we need to do that at my place." He reminded her.

"I know." Laura nodded, before grabbing his face and kissing him passionately. Suddenly she pulled back. "Ow." She felt her mouth. "My gums are sore."

"It's part of the transition." Damon warned her. "Your body wants you to feed, so now you'll start getting all of the nasty symptoms until you do."

"Will it hurt when my fangs come through?" Laura asked.

"Only the first time." Damon smiled. "After that, it tends to feel the opposite. It feels nice. That's why we tend to have to fight to keep them in when we get turned on." He explained. "The blood rushes towards the veins around our eyes, which feels really good. But you do need to get a handle on it, because if you can't control that, then you can't face the world."

"I know." Laura nodded before getting up. "I guess I need to quickly finish packing." She said.

Half an hour later Laura had finished packing and was stood outside the Gilbert house, looking up. Tears pricked her eyes, as since she'd ended up in Mystic Falls, she'd come to see this as her home, her sanctuary. For now, it would be a place she couldn't enter until she was able to control herself and ask Jeremy to invite her in. It was at that moment Laura realized she hadn't even consulted her brother regarding turning. She knew he'd be angry with her, but if she made it clear she had little option as Esther was too powerful to escape, then hopefully he would be okay with it. As long as Jeremy didn't meet Connor, then hopefully, he wouldn't turn into a vampire hunter, and maybe wouldn't be quite so anti-vampire.

When they returned to the Salvatore mansion, Caroline and Stefan were waiting for them in the parlor. Laura sighed, she didn't want to see these two at this point, because she suspected an argument was likely to ensue, however, it appeared she had no choice in the matter.

"So, you did it." Stefan folded his arms. "How are the symptoms?" he asked.

"I'm feeling really hungry." Laura told him. "My gums ache, and I've got a headache because everything seems so bright and loud." She shook her head. "The sun was really hurting my eyes on the way over here." She said.

"Didn't you wear sunglasses?" Caroline folded her arms. "Didn't you lend her your Damon?" she looked at Damon with disdain.

"Yes, I wore Damon's." Laura nodded. "They helped a little. But the sun is really bright, and I'm starting to feel a little weak." She complained.

"You need to feed." Damon told her, taking her bags out of her hands and walking her to the couch. "I'll take these upstairs, get you a bloodbag, and then you can complete the transition." He said.

Laura nodded. "Thank you." She smiled, pecking him on the cheek before sitting down.

When Damon disappeared, Stefan turned to talk to her. "Have you decided on how you will feed?" he asked.

Laura knew she wouldn't be sired to Damon, so she wasn't going to have the traumatic start Elena had. However, that didn't mean she was prepared to feed from animals. The thought of a vampire feeding from Rosie put her off.

"I'm going to stick with bloodbags." Laura told him. "I want to learn snatch, eat, erase, because it is a useful tool in restraint, and it could become a necessity one day."

"Why not animal blood?" Stefan asked. "That way, you won't kill anyone. If you hurt someone, or kill them, you'll never be able to take that back." He warned her.

"I'll be fine." Laura smiled. "Damon is going to teach me."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Seriously?" she cried. "He's a sociopath, who has no regard for human life. He's the worst possible person to teach you. He'll probably want you to kill so that you can flip the switch and be his evil sidekick." She said, her arms folded angrily.

Laura laughed. "Caroline…" she shook her head. "I think that is the last thing Damon wants. If I flip the switch, I won't be me." She frowned. "I'll be an empty shell of a person who looks like me. Who would want that?"

"Not me." Damon chimed in as he arrived with some bloodbags. "Blondie?" he handed one over to Caroline. "I'd offer you one Stefan, but I'm guessing you're back on Bambi blood right now." He said.

"You could at least try the animal diet." Stefan offered. "You might prefer it." He said as Laura noticed both Damon and Caroline wince.

"I can't Stefan." Laura shook her head as she held her hand out for the bloodbag, which Damon handed over to her. "I need to experience the blood lust so that I can control the blood lust." She explained. "What good would I be around Jeremy if he hurt himself and I couldn't control myself?" she asked.

"What if you're a ripper?" Stefan asked.

"How many vampires are there in the world?" Laura put her hands on her hips as Stefan shook his head, clearly having no idea of the answer to the question. "A conservative estimate would be around a hundred thousand?" Laura shrugged.

"Probably in the millions." Damon corrected her.

"How many rippers are there?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"I know this one." Damon put his hand up.

"Just you!" Laura spat, knowing that piece of information wasn't quite true, but as Lily was locked in the Prison World with no way of getting out, then there was no point in mentioning it. "So, the chances of me becoming a ripper are practically zero. But if I am, Damon is a lot stronger than me and he can stop me before I kill that person. And if I am, then I will try the bunny diet. But only if I am a proven ripper will I consider it as a main diet. If not, there's no point. I'd prefer bloodbags than killing forest animals. Plus, it's a lot less messy." She said as Stefan stood there, stunned by her outburst.

"Fine! Have it your way. Don't say I didn't warn you." Stefan snapped. "C'mon Caroline. Lets leave these two to it." He growled.

"See what you've done?" Caroline's eyes flared at Laura. "He doesn't deserve to be spoken to like that." She turned and looked up and down at Damon with a disgusted expression on her face. "Whatever crap you are feeding into her head, you need to stop!" she snapped.

"Sure Blondie. Like Elena can't think for herself." Damon rolled his eyes. "She's going for the same diet as you, but you're resenting her for it?" he walked up to Caroline and faced her angrily.

"I don't resent her for her diet." Caroline shook her head. "I resent the fact she's suddenly so blind to think you're the better option for her, when Stefan is her soulmate." She argued.

"If you think Stefan is so wonderful, you date him!" Laura cried. "I'm going to complete my transition!" she said as she stuck the tube from the bloodbag in her mouth and sucked up the red liquid.

At first it tasted disgusting, pretty much like blood. She looked at it and grimaced, not understanding why vampires liked it. However, after about three seconds she understood why. Her body suddenly felt strong, her vision was clear and sharp. Colors were more vibrant, and she could see every speck of dust in the room. Her sense of hearing changed as she could hear the birds outside singing more loudly than before, their tunes crisper and clearer.

The biggest change was how strong she felt, and how her mind felt. Everything around her seemed to slow down, make her feel faster, even though she'd barely moved. Also, the coppery taste of the blood seemed to change into a flavor she'd never experienced before. It was like a cross between the smell of baking bread, chocolate and spices. She couldn't put her finger on it, all she knew was she wanted more.

Laura picked up the bag and gulped down the rest of it. She realized she had cramps in her stomach where she was starving, and the amazing tasting blood was helping to soothe them, but she needed more. Damon handed her another bad, which she started to drink, when suddenly she felt the pain in her gums once more.

"Aargh!" she cried as she felt the fangs breaking through her gums for the first time.

Laura ran over to the mirror and looked at her reflection. There were veins around her eyes, which were now red, and her teeth were now fully elongated. She looked truly scary. She turned to Damon, terrified of her own reflection.

"You look beautiful." Damon smiled at her, suddenly putting Laura at each.

"Pass me a bucket!" Caroline complained in the background. "Stefan; are we leaving?" she asked as Stefan took one more look at Laura, nodded before following Caroline, and slamming the door behind him leaving Damon and Elena alone together.

"They'd make a great couple." Laura smiled at Damon.

"Please don't tell me you're serious." Damon shook his head. "The thought of Blondie as a sister-in-law. Eww!" he shuddered.

"I hadn't gotten as far as marriage." Laura laughed.

"If they ever get together, she'll expect the wedding of the century." Damon nodded his head.

"It'll keep them out of our hair." Laura smirked. "Who knows, Caroline might actually stop being judgy." She shrugged.

"That will never happen." Damon shook his head.

"Who knows." Laura smiled. "Now help me get rid of these teeth and veins. Talking is awkward, and they make me feel…." She started.

"Turned on?" Damon smirked.

"Yeah." Laura admitted.

"I'll help you get rid of them." Damon promised. "Then I'll help you get them back." He said seductively.

"I like the sound of that." Laura smiled.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

**Rated M for explicit sexual content.**

**I hope you all enjoy it.**

"Now take a deep breath, in through your nose and out through your mouth, and think of something icky, like Matt Donovan running around the square naked, or anchovies on pizza." Damon grinned as Laura tried not to laugh, but did as she was told, minus the Matt Donovan part, as the thought of anchovies on pizza was enough to do the job.

As she did, Laura felt the veins around her eyes rescind, along with the veins, her fangs also disappeared. She turned to Damon, who smiled proudly.

"What's next?" Laura asked.

"We need to get some more bloodbags into you." Damon told her. "Because you died through blood loss, you need to make up for it. You passed out before two liters and Klaus managed to get another liter out of you, so I need you to drink two more to replenish your supply before we carry on." He smiled, handing her some more blood, which she quickly drank, making her feel even more powerful.

"Can I learn to vamp-speed?" Laura asked.

"Sure." Damon nodded. "We'll have to do that outside though." He said.

"We'll leave that until later then." Laura nodded. "I know you can't teach me compulsion; I'm going to need a vervain-free human for that." She sighed. "How about feeding." She smiled as an idea popped into her head.

"You want to go feed on a human? Already?" Damon raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"I… was hoping I could practice on you first." Laura said shyly. "Vampires heal right? Just the biting part. The teeth are a lot smaller than I expected." She frowned as she allowed her fangs to push through again and examined them in the mirror.

"They're not that big." Damon agreed. "That's why most of the time feeding can get a little messy." He told her. "Of course, if the victim is willing, then you can do it with a little more… finesse. But as we like to cover our tracks, being messy helps." He said.

"Teach me how to do it cleanly." Laura smiled. "Can I try on you?" she asked.

Damon grinned. "Vampires can feed from each other." He nodded, edging closer to Laura. "But it is a very different experience than when you feed from a human." He said.

"What do you mean?" Laura asked, genuinely interested. She'd seen the episode where Elena had fed on Damon, and he had clearly gotten off on it, but she wanted to know exactly what it did, and to try it.

"Vampires don't actually feed from one another. They blood share." Damon lowered his voice.

"What's the difference?" Laura asked.

"Blood sharing is personal." Damon said. "It is what two vampires would do when they're… close." He looked at her seductively.

"Close?" Laura cocked her head, pretending to not understand.

"It is usually used during sex." Damon told her. "But only when vampires really trust each other."

"Why?" Laura whispered, feeling the veins around her eyes trying to push through, although she managed to fight them, however, the conversation with Damon was making her curiouser and curiouser by the minute. She wanted to experience it, and she was feeling very impatient.

"Have you ever done it?" Laura asked.

Damon nodded. "I once tried it. But I didn't have feelings for the woman, so it didn't work like it really should. But once I got a taste, as much as I liked it, I vowed I would never do it again until I got Katherine out of the tomb. But when I opened the tomb and found out she wasn't there, I just presumed I'd never get to experience its full potential, because with anyone else, there was no point. Until you." He lowered his eyes.

"So, you would do it with me?" Laura asked.

"Of course." Damon nodded. "I love you Elena, and it's only worth doing it with someone who you love."

"So, it won't help me learn how to feed?" Laura feigned disappointment.

"I guess it'll teach you how to pierce skin cleanly." Damon nodded with a smirk on his face. "I guess if your victim was a guy, he might be quite willing if you fed from him like a vampire shares blood. Of course, he'd end up dead." He rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Why?" Laura asked.

"I'd get really jealous and kill him." Damon smirked.

"Show me." Laura whispered.

"Now?" Damon raised an eyebrow. "The first thing you want to do after turning is have sex?" he asked with a tone of approval.

"Why not?" Laura shrugged. "Heightened emotions and all. Maybe I'm just focusing everything on you, and it's making me… want you." She blushed.

"You should be thinking about blood." Damon looked at her in surprise.

"How can I when you're standing right in front of me." Laura edged even closer to Damon, putting her hands on his hips. "I might need blood, but I need you." She said as she leaned in to kiss him.

Damon responded, his lips touching hers with such tenderness, it sent a warm feeling throughout Laura's body. Yet, she was full of power and energy, and she wanted something more than tenderness. She was no longer breakable, and she had an urge to explore that, but not in a sadistic way. Laura didn't want to just make love, she wanted something a little rougher, something only vampires would be able to handle. It was her way of discovering her new powers and adjusting to them accordingly. Laura remembered the first time Damon and Elena had sex in the show, and decided she wanted a version of her own, albeit possibly a little rougher and with some blood sharing. It would also give her the chance to try out her power of strength, which was why Laura decided to control the situation.

Laura decided she wanted to push Damon up against the wall. Using her vampire strength and speed, Laura concentrated on what she wanted and suddenly Damon was stood against the wall, knocking over a lamp in the process. Completely taken by surprise, Damon gave the lamp the merest glance and turned his attention back to Laura. He hadn't shown her how to use her power and speed, therefore her grasp on the mechanics was obviously a shock to Damon.

"You're a quick learner." Damon smirked. "Maybe we could use this as a vampire tutorial." He wiggled his eyes.

"Shut up!" Laura demanded and kissed him forcefully.

Damon shook his head and lifted his hands in mock surrender. An unspoken message telling her she was in charge, for now and he was at her mercy, granting her permission to do whatever she wanted and learn how to use her powers on him. Immediately her lips found his once more, and he tried to wrap his arms around her, however Laura had decided she wanted to feel his naked flesh. She wanted to touch, kiss, lick and explore every part of Damon's body. However, Damon was wearing a black t-shirt, which in Laura's mind, meant he was overdressed; she just hoped he wasn't too attached to what he was wearing, because she was going to test her strength once more.

Laura grabbed the collar of Damon's t-shirt and ripped it open, revealing his naked torso. She wrapped one arm around his neck and her fingernails gentle scratched his chest. Laura lowered her head to his Damon's neck and traced his carotid artery with her tongue, at the same time sensing his heart rate increase. She pulled away to check Damon's reaction, and wasn't disappointed. When she looked into Damon's eyes, Laura saw a look she'd never seen on his face, not even the time when they'd made love, this time it was outright lust. A look which sent heat straight to her core, causing it to ache as she felt her panties beginning to dampen with desire. With their heightened sense of smell, Laura knew Damon must have been aware of her arousal, by scent alone, just as much as she could feel his through his pants.

Damon must have decided to show Laura exactly how it was done, as the next minute, she found herself up against the wall next to the fireplace. What would have once terrified her, now simply turned her on even more.

Mimicking her previous actions, Damon's tongue also traced Laura's carotid artery, sending shivers of pleasure down her spine. Once done, his mouth met hers in an earth-shattering kiss, which told her exactly how much he'd held back when she was human.

Although Damon pressed her up hard against the wall, the sensation didn't hurt like it would have done twenty-four hours ago. Instead, it simply helped stabilize her for the time being, which she desperately needed; especially when Damon's hand made its way to the back of her thigh. He pulled her leg high up around his hips, ripping the seams of her tight her dress, allowing him to press his now solid erection directly against Laura's core. Bolts of electricity flew throughout her body at the merest of contact from their hips. They hadn't even gotten to foreplay and he already had her dripping wet and ready for him to take her right there.

Damon wrapped his arm around Laura's waist, pulling her hips ever closer to his, the friction simultaneously easing the ache in her core, yet increasing her need for him all at the same time. Laura knew there was no way they were going to make it upstairs without some form of relief. She couldn't wait another moment to feel him inside her, she needed him to fuck her, and fuck her hard.

Laura ran her fingers through Damon's hair, taking in the silky soft texture. That was the thing about being a vampire, just being able to touch something was heightened, and when it was as beautiful as Damon, she couldn't get enough. They continued to kiss passionately as Laura ran her fingers down Damon's body until she found his pants. Laura pulled down the zipper and undid the button, before sliding one hand into Damon's boxer briefs and wrapping her fingers around his cock, earning her a smirk of approval.

Laura tore Damon's pants and boxer briefs away from his hips, letting them fall to the floor while she moved her hand up and down the silky soft skin of his cock. Damon kicked his clothes and shoes out of the way while he gently lowered Laura's leg to the ground. He repaid the compliment of destroying clothes and tore right down the middle of her dress, opening it as if it were a dress robe. Damon then pushed it off her shoulders and threw it to one side, where it joined his pile of clothes. This left Laura just wearing her black lacy underwear set and thigh high's. Which admittedly, she'd purposely chosen just in the hope of something like this happening.

Damon stepped closer to Laura, his hand reached down to her panties and moved the crotch to one side before his fingers tentatively explored her folds.

"Oh my god, Damon." Laura whimpered as her eyes rolled back into her head at the heat pooling inside the pit of her stomach.

"Fuck, you're wet." Damon whispered into Laura's ear, his voice deep, dark and seductive.

"For you, always." Laura cupped Damon's cheek with her free hand, while one of Damon's fingers found their way inside her.

As soon as his fingers entered her, he immediately withdrew them, causing Laura to moan at feeling shortchanged. However, there was a glint in Damon's eyes, suggesting he was up to something, which was confirmed as he sucked her juices from his finger before putting it in her mouth. Laura clamped down gently with her teeth before sucking hard, as Damon's eyes, dark with lust from watching her.

Damon withdrew his finger which was instantaneously replaced by his lips. He kissed with such force and passion, it took her breath away, however their lips weren't together for long. Damon's mouth made its way to Laura's neck, gently sucking the skin. Laura cocked her head to one side, allowing Damon access to her carotid artery, after which, she felt the craping of blunt teeth.

"This is not going to hurt." Damon whispered, as if he were compelling a victim.

Laura's heart raced in anticipation as she felt Damon's teeth pierce her skin. The sensation was nothing like she'd expected. The first thing to surprise her was the lack of pain, although she suspected that was because she was a vampire and had a heightened pain tolerance. Instead she felt a sharp pinprick, which was quickly replaced by the most exquisite feeling ever. She felt slightly dizzy from lightheadedness, combined with being seemingly drunk. However, her blood all seemed to rush to one spot in her body, her core.

Damon clearly knew what she was experiencing. Which must have been why his mouth left her neck and instead, made its way down her chest, where he ripped her bra apart. His hands stroked the curves her body as he got to his knees and kissed his way along her stomach and hips, just above her panties. He looked up at Laura before tearing them off.

Laura thought she knew what he was going to do, but she was wrong. Damon spread her legs wider and kissed her pubic bone, while his fingers found their way inside her. Laura had never wanted anyone's mouth on her more than she wanted Damon's at that moment, however, Damon had other ideas. He turned his head slightly to the side before glancing up at her. His fangs elongated and veins around his red eyes, it was at that moment, Laura realized what he was going to do, so to help him, she turned her legs out to the side to give him better access.

Damon's teeth pierced the juncture between her thigh and pelvis, right where her femoral artery ran, and he began to gently suck on her blood. Laura had never felt anything like it in her life. Once more she felt lightheaded, and everything around her was blurry. Damon's hands, lips and tongue seemed to be everywhere, all over her body, doing exactly what she wanted him to do. However, the strangest part was he seemed to be inside her mind, questioning her needs, her darkest desires, and probing to see how far she would allow their sex life to go. It was as if he was talking dirty to her, without ushering a word, and within seconds, she had offered him everything, her only limits was she would never share him with another woman, and vice versa. Laura was prepared to explore sexual boundaries she had once put in place, because she completely trusted Damon with her body and soul, and she knew he was also telling her he loved her.

The sensation of opening up and trust in Damon had a curious effect. Laura felt extremely liberated and free for the first time in her life. Damon would never judge her, she could be whoever she wanted to be with him, everything was a possibility, and the list of possibilities were endless. The moment she understood this her body began to shake. Heat took over her mind and she felt like she was having the most powerful orgasm, not in her core, instead the sensation was in her head. Moments later, she felt Damon's mouth on her core, as her mind orgasm began to wane, however, the second Damon's tongue found its way to her clitoris, her insides joined in with the last waves of her head orgasm, giving an added meaning to having a mind-blowing orgasm.

Laura screamed; words were not an option as she couldn't form them, her head was still buzzing from the experience and she couldn't use it to form coherent words. Her legs buckled, and she could feel herself falling, yet she could no longer see. In fact, Laura was no longer sure whether she was hallucinating or not, as she felt strong arms around her and the wind in her hair. The next moment, the hard wood from behind her back had been replaced with soft cotton, and her vision was returning.

Eventually her body recovered enough for Laura to realize they were now in Damon's bedroom, which was dimly lit, giving it a romantic feel. Damon was above her, his arms either side of her head, staring down at her, smiling.

"How was that?" Damon asked, genuinely curious.

"Intense." Laura admitted. "I can see why it is something that needs to be between two people who love each other." She smiled.

"Vampires who are into kinky shit do it a lot." Damon explained. "But I doubt they get the full benefits." He smiled.

"Can I do it to you?" Laura asked as Damon frowned.

"We'll stick to the neck for the first time." Damon nodded. "I might heal quickly Elena, but if you get that second part wrong, it'll take a while to heal, and that kinda defies the point." He said, as Laura realized he had a point. She didn't wants to catch him in delicate areas. "I'll still get most of the benefits." He added.

Laura smiled, knowing he was right. However, she was slightly disappointed he hadn't given her his full trust yet. What it did do, was encourage her to want to practice as much as possible, so she could bite him where it would be as intense for him as it had been for her.

Using her strength, Laura flipped them over until she was on top. Although Damon was letting her control him, she found out it was easy to work out how much pressure to use to avoid breaking things as she had to put more energy into using her vampire powers. When she didn't use them, she was no stronger than she was before she turned. Laura straddled Damon's hips, rubbing her wet core against his extremely hard manhood, lowering herself, ready to kiss Damon, however, he stopped her.

"I want to be inside you when you bite me." Damon whispered as he gently tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Now that sounds like a plan." Laura wiggled her eyebrows.

Laura lifted herself back up and took his manhood in her hand and placed it at her entrance, before slowly lowering herself down onto him, her insides deliciously stretching to accommodate his length and girth. Once she was on top, she initially moved slowly, to build up the rhythm, expecting her body to take the normal amount of time to adapt to someone being inside her, however, vampirism clearly had other perks, as she didn't need to go slowly to adjust.

Damon smirked. "I'm guessing you've noticed the other perks." She said as he grabbed Laura's hips and thrust upwards and inside her with a lot more force than she expected, almost taking her breath away at the unexpected pleasure of it.

Once she was over the initial shock of Damon's actions, she began to move in sync with him, maximizing their thrusts, however, Laura was desperate to taste Damon, meaning her actions had to be lightly muted when she bent down. First of all, she kissed him on the lips with all of the passion she could muster, to which Damon responded. Her hair fell around them, surrounding them like curtains, cocooning them in a small world all of their own. This was fine for kissing; however, it wasn't practical for Laura's hair being in the way when biting him. Damon must have realized his as he pulled her hair to one side, ensuring it wouldn't get in the way when she sank her teeth into his neck.

Laura ended the kiss and placed small pecks along Damon's chiseled jawline, before making her way down his neck. She licked the outline of his artery, which seemed to highlight the pulsating blood underneath the skin. Laura's vampire instinct took over, as the blood rushed to the veins around her eyes, and her fangs elongated, while her mouth watered at the sight of the potential meal. Her core became burning hot with desire, a side effect she hadn't anticipated, however, she wasn't sure whether that was the down to the desire to feed, or the fact that Damon was thrusting up into her with all of his power, while he had his hands on her hips and was pulling her down on him. Whatever it was, Laura didn't care, all she knew was blood.

The heat building in her pussy was almost painful as Damon continued to thrust inside her, while his fingers found her nub and he began to massage her clit. The room was silent except for the sounds of them panting and moaning, and the noise of skin slapping against skin, a clear indication of their activities. Even the smell of the sex resonated throughout the air, a smell which seemed to fuel Laura's desire even further. She could especially smell it at the point where his carotid artery was protruding through his neck. With all of the restraint she could muster, Laura lined up her fangs with the artery and delicately pierced the flesh.

"Oh my god." Damon whimpered as the gush of warm blood filled her mouth, and with it, the most delicious taste she'd ever experienced.

Damon tasted of how he smelled, which, even when human, Laura thought he smelled divine. The only difference was right now, he also tasted of sex, and of her. As he pummeled into her, she showed Damon what she wanted from him. Just like he'd given her some kinky sexual ideas, Laura decided to do the same, to which she found Damon telling her he wanted the same, yet oddly, he didn't speak words, his blood told her everything. Laura also wanted Damon to know this wasn't all about sex for her, this was about them both, but before she even had the chance to put that thought into his mind, she felt him tell her how much he loved her.

For some reason, his blood was able to communicate better than words. Laura could physically taste his love for her, and it was the most beautiful thing she'd ever felt. His love for her was pure and unconditional. In his eyes, she could do no wrong, he felt that his entire existence now had purpose, which was to look after, and protect Laura. The emotional onslaught was incredible, however, that was even further intensified when she felt Damon's teeth prick her own neck once again.

Immediately, they were catapulted away, no longer in Damon's bed, but on a white sandy beach, with turquoise waters and exotic trees surrounding them. They weren't even making love, but instead were walking barefoot through the warm ripples of water.

"This is my idea of idyllic perfection, with you." Damon told her.

Laura tried to conjure up an image, but they remained on the beach. "Why can't I do it?" she frowned.

"Because I'm older and stronger than you." Damon smiled. "And because it is something I've dreamed of for a long time. Passion fuels desire and power for a vampire." He told her. "Although, considering what else I'm doing, I can't hold this image for much longer, just long enough to warn you, that when we get back, we'll both come almost straight away." He said as he kissed her.

Suddenly they were back in Damon's room, and just as he promised, Laura knew she had no control over her impending orgasm. In fact, she needed to thrust harder as she desperately needed it, however, to do that, she had to stop drinking Damon's blood.

Laura sat up as she felt the warmth beginning to congregate around her throbbing core; a feeling so intense she'd never known it affect her so powerfully. It was different from what she'd experienced before when Damon had made her come when he bit her. In some respects, this felt far more personal and intimate as she had just been in Damon's head, and could still taste his deep love and passion for and it was the most beautiful thing she'd ever known. That was the final piece of the puzzle to tip her over the edge as her core felt like it was going to burst out of her body.

"Damon...oh yes...oh yes...ah...ah...oh...fuck...yes...aargh!" she cried as she felt her pussy clamping down hard on Damon's cock, milking him to his own release while he continued to thrust in and out of her with even more vigor, all the while white hot spasms were pulsating throughout her body.

Laura looked down at Damon and realized he was about to reach his own climax. Laura couldn't take her eyes away from Damon as he reached his peak. His forehead creased, his lips parted, and his breathing became heavy.

"Elena...fuck...aargh..." he whispered as he went rigid at almost the same moment as Laura did. Her back arched downwards as she felt his warm seed fill her heated contracting core, sending further shockwaves of pleasure through her sensitive body.

Their movements slowed and eventually came to a stop as their bodies recovered from their lovemaking. Laura could feel Damon softening inside her as he sat up and looked into her eyes.

"I love you." He whispered.

"I love you too." Laura smiled, lowering her head and kissing him.


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

The next morning, Damon and Laura both received a text from Elijah, telling them he was going to be visiting them that morning at eleven, and to arrange the rest of the Mystic Falls gang to be there when he arrived. With trepidation, she had contacted Caroline, asking her to bring Stefan earlier to clear the air, which Caroline agreed to. The biggest surprise was Bonnie's reaction. She appeared to not only be aware of the meeting with Elijah, but was already aware of what it was about, although she wasn't ready to divulge until they met later.

By the time Caroline and Stefan had arrived, the house was rid of any evidence of their previous night's activities. Instead, Damon and Laura had just finished up a couple of bloodbags and were now sipping coffee in the kitchen when they arrived.

"Good morning." Came Caroline's shrill voice as she and Stefan arrived.

"In the kitchen." Laura called out, as Stefan and Caroline appeared.

Stefan got two more mugs out of a cupboard and poured himself and Caroline a coffee before joining them.

"So, what's this all about?" Stefan asked.

"Elijah wants to meet the Scooby gang at eleven." Damon told him.

"But Damon and I wanted to clear things up between us first." Laura said slowly as Caroline rolled her eyes. "Look, I needed to protect my brother, so after careful consideration, without Damon's input, I decided to turn." She said. "It's done and can't be reversed, so there is no point in us fighting about it. Jeremy is my number one priority, and he always will be. nothing will stop me from doing whatever I have to do to protect him." She said.

"How does this protect Jeremy?" Caroline asked.

"He's no longer at risk from Klaus or Esther." Laura explained.

"Why was he a risk from Klaus?" Stefan frowned.

"Klaus sent Kol to watch over him." Damon told them as Caroline and Stefan looked at each other. "And I don't think it was to make sure he ate his vegetables." He winced.

"Which means we need to put our differences to one side." Laura said. "This is about all of us and our survival. I chose to turn to save everyone I love, including you two." She said.

"I'm just worried you haven't thought this out properly Elena." Caroline sighed. "You always wanted kids when we were younger, and you've given all of that up for…" she glanced over at Damon, but never finished her sentence.

"Jeremy's kids will have the coolest aunt in the world." Laura smirked. "As long as I get a handle on things. I'm fine with bloodbags, and I know I need to learn snatch, eat, erase. Even if it is only to know how to let go. I called Matt; he's volunteered to help with that." She said.

"You're going to feed from Matt?" Caroline shrieked.

"Don't worry Blondie, I'll be on hand to make sure she's fine." Damon said calmly. "The erase part will be compelling him to do something simple, like hopping on one leg." He added. "I doubt he'd be able to handle anything more complex than that." He added sarcastically.

"I would never hurt Matt!" Laura said defensively.

"Well, I want to be there too." Caroline insisted.

"I was hoping you would." Laura smiled. "The more support I have, the better." She said.

"So, what does Elijah want?" Stefan asked, changing the subject.

Laura shook her head. "I don't know exactly, except that he's plotting something with Bonnie to help get rid of Esther so that we can save Ric." She told him. "I guess we'll find out when they get here."

"Okay." Stefan said, drinking his coffee.

"Are we all okay now?" Laura looked between Stefan and Caroline.

"Elena, we just broke up, so no, me and you, we're not okay yet. But we've got to work together for the greater good, which means I'll have to deal with it." He sighed.

"Caroline?" Laura looked at Caroline.

"Okay, so I know it's not my place to judge…" Caroline started.

"But you're going to anyway, aren't you Blondie." Damon shot a look at Caroline, who attempted to ignore him.

"But… I was going to say, I think you're making a mistake." She said. "On the other hand, you're a new vampire with heightened emotions. I expect once everything has calmed down, you'll come to your senses." She smiled.

"This started before I turned." Laura reminded her.

"When Stefan was off the rails." Caroline argued. "He's getting back to his normal self, and when you see that, I have no doubt you'll come around." She nodded and folded her arms.

Laura looked at Damon and tried to stifle a laugh, who clearly knew what was wrong. Caroline's bias was so clear, she wasn't seeing straight. Laura knew Caroline had never really stopped having a thing for Stefan, which was one of the reasons why she was defending. Now Laura was about to discuss the other reason Caroline was being so defensive.

"Have you seen Tyler yet?" Laura asked.

"Nope!" Caroline spat.

"He was at Klaus's mansion the other day." Laura told her. "He helped with hooking me up to turn. Have you even spoken with him?" she asked.

"If he can't see me, it's probably because he couldn't break the sire-bond." Caroline said sadly. "Daddy doesn't want him anywhere near me until he has. He can't be away from Klaus too long because he'll get suspicious." She shook her head.

"Wolfboy will be joining the party in a few minutes." Damon smirked. "So, you can ask him yourself."

"Who else is coming?" Stefan asked, ignoring Damon.

"I know Bonnie, Elijah and Tyler." Laura started. "Matt is working, so he can't come. No idea if Elijah is bringing anyone else." She shrugged.

At that, Laura heard the front door open and a number of footsteps entering the foyer, suggesting multiple people had arrived.

"We're coming." Caroline yelled as they got up and headed towards the living room.

A few seconds later, they joined Elijah, Bonnie, Abby, Klaus, Rebekah and Sheriff Forbes. Laura sidled up to Damon, feeling uncomfortable by the arrival of their unexpected guests.

"Where's Kol?" Laura looked to Klaus. "Is he still stalking my brother?" she folded her arms.

"Actually, he's protecting your brother." Klaus said smugly. "Admittedly, it is a change of task, I did originally send him to ensure you played your part in helping me with my hybrids, but as it turns out, our need for him there is required even after your donation." He glanced over at Caroline, who's lowered her eyes. "I'm not always the bad guy." He smirked.

"Seriously? You think doing one semi-decent thing makes you a good guy? Pfft!" Caroline huffed, causing Laura to stifle a laugh. She knew Caroline had some feelings towards Klaus, but she didn't want everyone to know about that. Unlike Caroline, she wasn't going to judge how her friend felt about another man. In fact, as far as Laura was concerned, Klaus was an upgrade from Tyler.

"Okay, so, why is the dark side teaming up with the Jedi?" Damon raised an eyebrow. "Has Lord Voldemort turned up and suddenly we've discovered he's worse than Darth Vader?" he asked.

"It's not all about you Damon." Rebekah looked Damon up and down, as Laura stood in front of him to block Rebekah's view. "We're all vampires, and we all have to play our parts." She said.

"Can someone explain what's going on?" Stefan asked.

"Myself, Bonnie and Ms. Bennett, went on a little trip while Elena was turning into a vampire." Elijah told them. "With a little help from our lovely Sheriff here, we had a nice day out in Boston, Massachusetts." He smiled.

"What's in Boston?" Caroline asked as Laura suddenly remembered a little fact about Boston.

"Ric's from Boston." Laura said.

"We went to see his parents." Bonnie confirmed.

"What for?" Damon asked.

"To try to find Alaric, we needed to know what blocking spell Esther was using." Abby explained. "Her magic must be quite weak, which means she can only partially block him. It's a loophole." She smiled.

"A newbie witch isn't strong enough to completely block a person." Bonnie explained. "And although Esther isn't a newbie, she can't use too much magic, otherwise she won't be able to cast any really strong spells." She said. "To maintain the block, she has to use what methods she can to prevent us finding him with a locator spell. But there is more than one way to use a locator spell. Using his possessions wasn't enough. Which means she was using that aspect of the spell as it is our main source of connection with Ric. He has no blood relatives here, so we couldn't use blood." She told them.

"So, you went to Boston to get some blood from his parents?" Laura asked as Bonnie nodded.

"Why did it need three of you?" Damon frowned.

"We were going to go and find him and bring him back to Mystic Falls." Elijah explained. "Except, according to the locator spell which worked by using his mother's blood, he never left."

"What?" Damon shook his head. "We searched everywhere.

"Actually, you didn't." Sheriff Forbes corrected him. "He's in a place where vampires can't go." She said.

"In the caves?" Stefan asked.

"Under Fell's church." Liz told them.

"Esther has put a spell on the tomb under the church, exactly the same one used by Emily Bennett." Elijah explained. "Human's can enter, vampires cannot." He said.

"And I'm not strong enough to open the tomb alone." Bonnie shook her head sadly.

"So, we need a stronger witch." Damon shrugged. "Is Lucy around, or is she on the run from Katherine after double crossing her?" he asked.

"Has anyone been down there to check?" Caroline asked. "If we do, then Ric and Esther are going to get suspicious." She said.

"How is he even surviving?" Laura asked. "Who's taking the food and water? It can't be Esther, unless she's inside someone else's body." She said, looking over at Rebekah.

"This is where we need Damon." Bonnie said as everyone looked at her in confusion.

"You want me trapped in that place?" he asked.

"No, but you are the only one I know who can get to the entrance without being noticed." Bonnie said, unless every other vampire can do what Damon does.

"What's that?" Klaus frowned.

"I can mind control crows to do what I want them to do." Damon told them.

"I have never heard of this before." Elijah frowned. "This is not a technique I am familiar with." He said.

"It would require you to have access to some other type of magic." Rebekah said. "A type where…." a smile appeared upon her face. "You were turned by Katherine Pierce, who is a doppelganger." She said.

"Umm… yeah." Damon frowned. "So what?"

"I have researched magic over the years. I was disappointed I could never be a witch like my mother." Rebekah explained. "I sought to see if there were other ways of me being able to channel magic without the need of a witch. There are ways, but only under certain circumstances." She told them.

"Go on." Damon encouraged her.

"Travelers are able to transport themselves into the body of another human." Rebekah said. "I see no reason why they wouldn't be able to do this to an animal."

Laura had to pretend she knew nothing of what Rebekah was talking about, but her knowledge of Stefan and Damon's ancestry was already telling her everything she needed to know.

"We're not travelers." Stefan frowned.

"How do you know?" Elijah asked. "Travelers are an ancient coven of witches who had very specific powers. Singularly, they are weak. Collectively, they are powerful. However, even alone, they can perform some magic."

"Vampires can't be witches." Caroline sighed.

"Actually, that is not true." Rebekah shook her head. "There are types of witches who have no access to magic of their own, instead they have to consume it from other magical beings. If they become vampires, they have a permanent source of magic to tap into. They're called heretics." She said.

"I can't do magic." Damon shrugged.

"You can control fog too." Stefan reminded him.

"I thought all vampires could do this shit." Damon said, appearing confused.

"Just you it appears." Caroline scoffed.

"So, are you saying we're descended from travelers?" Damon asked.

"To be able to body hop, travelers require the blood of a doppelganger." Rebekah explained. "And it doesn't matter if the donor is human or vampire. Because you are probably a descendent of travelers, and you were turned by a doppelganger, you have additional vampire powers other vampires don't." she said.

"So why can't I do it?" Stefan asked.

"Because you only feed from the blood of animals." Elijah said.

"It makes you weak." Klaus added.

"So, let me get this straight. A vampire who is descended from a traveler, who was created by a doppelganger and drinks human blood, can mind control animals." Caroline narrowed her eyes. "Is it mind control?" she asked.

"I can see through their eyes and I can make them do things." Damon admitted. "I can even communicate through them. It's how I go to you." He shrugged. "I haven't done it in a while though. I'd need to find a suitable bird." He said.

"Won't it seem odd for a bird to fly into the tomb?" Tyler asked.

"Good point." Laura frowned. "Have you ever tried to change into anything else?" she asked Damon.

"I only ever wanted to fly." Damon shrugged. "I can pretty much do everything else myself. Why would I want to change into anything else?" he asked.

"Maybe a crow isn't the most useful creature to turn into." Elijah said.

"What about a rat?" Laura suggested. "Ric would never think it was you." She said.

"I don't know…" Caroline said sarcastically.

"Actually, Elena's right." Stefan nodded. "A rat is the most plausible creature that would go down there. Well other than a spider." He shrugged as Damon's face screwed up.

"A rat?" he winced. "Are you guys serious? Eww."

"All you need to do is check Ric is there." Bonnie said. "I can do the rest. It will take five minutes." She said. "Plus, I'm sure it will be easier to find a rat than catch a bird." She smirked.

"I'm not exactly an expert on the matter of animal snatching." Damon turned to Stefan. "On the other hand, brother, that is your point of expertise." He smiled.

"You want me to go and catch a rat?" Stefan raised an eyebrow, as Damon suddenly smirked.

"Just don't eat it." Laura reminded him, causing Stefan to glare at her.

"Okay." Stefan sighed. "I won't be long." He said as he left.

Liz checked her watch. "Let me know how it goes. I've got to get back, otherwise my deputies will be wondering where I am." She said as she walked over to Caroline and gave her a peck on the cheek. "I'll see you tonight sweetheart." She said.

"See you later mom." Caroline smiled as Liz left.

"Anything else?" Damon asked, looking around the room.

Rebekah took a deep breath. "I am the weak link that my mother can infiltrate." She said. "She can jump into anyone's body, but if she doesn't truly know them, she will have difficulty in pretending to be that person. I am the only one she can imitate." She cast her eyes down. "Which means I cannot stay around while she is around."

"What do you mean?" Tyler asked.

"It means I have to do this, with my sister's permission." Klaus said as he drew one of the sliver daggers out of his pocket, along with the small bottle of white oak ash. He dipped the dagger into the ash. "Are you ready little sister?" he asked.

"As ready as ever Nik." Rebekah nodded. "Just remember to wake me up when this is all done." She said.

"I will make sure of it." Elijah assured her as Klaus thrust the dagger deep into Rebekah's heart. She choked, before her skin turned grey and the veins of a vampire death appeared all over her body.

"Can we keep her here?" Klaus asked. "My mother is less likely to look here than anywhere else. I have brought her casket." He added.

"You can lock her in the basement." Damon nodded.

"Tyler!" Klaus barked. "Bring Rebekah's casket from the car and take it to the basement. Then rest my baby sister in it. And please… be gentle." He added in a mock caring voice, which caused Laura to roll her eyes.

Tyler took Rebekah to the basement before disappearing to get her casket. Leaving Damon, Laura, Klaus, Elijah, Caroline, Bonnie and Abby in the living room.

"What happens next?" Laura asked.

"Once we've confirmed the locator spell was right, I'm going to cast another spell." Bonnie said. "A boundary spell, except it will mean just Ric can't leave the tomb." She said.

"How?" Damon frowned.

"I still have blood from his parents." Bonnie told them. "I can create a spell to only keep Ric locked in there, as long as I tie it to an astrological event." She said.

"The full moon is tonight." Klaus said.

Bonnie shook her head. "We need more tine than that." She said. "And the next full moon isn't until November 21st. I don't really want to keep Ric locked up that long. There's a new moon on November 6th, that gives us two weeks to sort this problem out. Other than that, I could tie him to a meteor shower on the seventeenth, but again I think that would be too long. That gives us two weeks to ready our plan. Do you guys think we can deal with Esther by then?" she asked.

"Fooling my mother into turning her is going to be very difficult." Elijah shook his head. "Even if her magic is somewhat drained, she still has powers which supersede ours."

"Do we know whether she knows about me?" Laura asked. "Being a vampire." She said.

"Why would she?" Damon asked.

"Bonnie is there any way you can cloak my vampirism?" Laura asked. "I mean, like when a witch touches me, they know I'm dead. Can that be cloaked?" she frowned.

"I guess." Bonnie narrowed her eyes.

"It can be done." Abby said. "I have a spell in my grimoire to cloak supernatural creatures from witches. That should work."

"Then cloak my vampirism." Laura suggested. "She's going to have to come after me. I can turn her." She grinned, suddenly feeling useful. "I'm the only one she won't suspect." She insisted as Damon looked at her with trepidation.

"She's right." Klaus agreed. "Mother won't suspect her."

"Are there any other celestial events she can use between now and November 6th?" Damon asked.

"No." Bonnie shook her head.

"Well, I guess that's when Esther will strike. It looks like that's going to be the night the empire of Mystic Falls will have to be ready to strike back." Damon grinned. "We all in?" he asked as everyone nodded in agreement. "I guess we'll have to make sure our plan is ready by then." He said.


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

The following two weeks were an extremely busy time for Laura. For the first couple of days after transition, she'd been learning to control her feeding from Matt, although Damon had promised they would try something more adventurous after they had dealt with Esther, which Laura hoped would be the trip to Whitmore. They'd been making their plans in earnest, as although Laura was going to be the main person to try to turn Esther, there would be others backing her up. Laura had even considered as a last resort, turning Ric before Esther did.

However, the one thing which took up most of her free time was the decade dance. It appeared that Caroline's new approach to keeping Damon and Laura apart, was to keep Laura away from Damon as much as possible. In the meantime, Stefan was helping them out, therefore Laura was spending far more time with the younger Salvatore than her preferred choice.

For his part, Damon was busy keeping an eye on Ric. He would spend hours in the body of the rat, which he'd named Enzo, making sure Ric didn't leave the tomb. He'd also managed to hear snippets of Esther's plans, enabling them to create their own to counteract hers.

The one thing which worried them was Esther was going to tie Ric's life to someone else, which was a cause for concern. Enzo the rat wasn't fast enough to follow Esther, and Damon wasn't strong enough to keep switching animals to keep up with her, therefore they didn't know where she went after she left Ric. Klaus or Tyler becoming wolves and sniffing out Esther wouldn't help as they had little control once they turned, the other issue was that Esther might have spotted them and moved Ric.

The day of the decade dance, a meeting was called. Although Bonnie, Laura, Elijah and Abby all knew Esther would draw her power that night, as far as the rest of the gang was concerned, she would be waiting until the next day, which was the full moon. However, they weren't sure whether Esther was able to go through with any plans until their regular rat report.

Damon, Laura, Stefan, Caroline, Bonnie, Klaus and Elijah were all gathered in the library at the Salvatore boarding house, Matt was supposed to be there, but he was running late, something about an accident at the grill, however, he promised he'd be there as soon as possible. Abby was also running late as Jamie had been injured in a car accident and Abby wanted to fix him with vampire blood.

They hadn't met in three days, and Damon had told them all he had some huge news, which he wasn't even prepared to share with Laura, which made her suspicious.

"What's going on?" Caroline asked. "I've left Tyler and Chris, unsupervised, hanging disco lights for the decade dance. They have no idea of fabulous, so they're going to get it wrong." She snapped.

"Sorry Blondie, but I have a major update, with some very concerning news." Damon told them.

"I'm all ears." Klaus sighed.

"Esther has gotten hold of some of Elena's human blood!" Damon stated, as everyone looked at each other in shock.

"Impossible!" Klaus cried.

"Actually, no it's not." Damon shook his head. "It appears your blood stash has been pilfered. Along with a white oak stake." He folded his arms. "How many people knew of the whereabouts of these items?" he asked.

Klaus thought for a minute. "The people in this room, Tyler, Abby and four other hybrids." He replied.

"Has anyone had any blackouts recently?" Damon asked as everyone shook their heads. "Which means, Esther has been inside the body of one of your hybrids." He said, looking at Klaus.

"I would know if one of my hybrids had been infiltrated, if that is what you are suggesting." Klaus stood up angrily.

"Would you?" Laura asked. "Do you know any of them well enough to recognize that they weren't themselves for a few hours?"

Klaus cast his eyes down and shook his head before shaking his head. "None of them were women. I made sure that only men guarded the bloodbags and the stake." He said.

"Maybe she entered the body of a man." Bonnie suggested.

"I thought we said that was impossible." Caroline frowned.

"Improbable, not impossible." Elijah corrected her. "We believed the biological differences between man and woman would make things… awkward." He said, brushing his suit jacket down uncomfortably.

"She wouldn't know where to put it." Damon smirked, clearly deciding the need to clarify Elijah's explanation.

"I know what he meant." Caroline glared at Damon as he held his hands up defensively.

"So, the entire reason it was believed my mother wouldn't inhabit the body of a man was because she wouldn't know how to wear a bloody pair of jeans in a man's body." Klaus growled. "Excellent plan! It looks like at least one of us is screwed." He said, turning to Elijah.

"Actually, she's going to make the stake re-usable, so we're all screwed." Damon interrupted. "Clearly Mama Original is into recycling these days."

"How?" Stefan asked.

"Something to do with the Gilbert ring and some witchy-woo." Damon shrugged.

"I thought she was low on power." Caroline frowned.

"She can do the spell, although she's going to need extra juice…" Damon started.

"From tomorrow's full moon." Stefan offered.

"She didn't say that." Damon frowned as Laura and Bonnie looked at each other, knowing that Esther was going to try to turn Ric that very evening.

"She won't create another immortal to kill immortals." Klaus rolled his eyes.

"She's not exactly making him immortal." Damon said. "She's tying Ric's life to someone else's; she just didn't say who."

"I assume this person is human." Bonnie frowned. "It would be pointless tying his life to a vampire's, because if Ric killed the Original who created the vampire who's life his is tied to, he would die. Making a reusable stake completely pointless."

At that moment, Matt turned up, his hand wrapped in a bandage, which was tinged red with blood. Laura had to take deep breaths to stop the veins forming around her eyes. Damon grasped her hand and held it reassuringly, which seemed to do the trick and calm her down. As she looked around the room. She noticed Stefan was having a harder time than she was reigning it in.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked Matt.

"Cut my hand clearing up broken glass." He told them.

"I can fix it?" Laura offered, but Matt shook his head.

"I'm good thanks." He smiled.

Damon walked over to Matt and put his arm around his shoulder. "Now personally, I don't give a shit about that cut on your hand. But you see, my baby bro is just detoxing from a ripper binge and that blood could send him right over the edge. That means he could attack you, rip your head off and get blood on my Persian Rug, which would cost upwards of thirty thousand dollars to replace." He told him. "So, you will have some vampire blood." He said, biting his wrist and sticking it into Matt's mouth, who started making a muffling sound until Damon released him.

Matt coughed once free. "Jeez, thanks for the concern." He winced as the injury cleared up. "Has it occurred to you I might not want vampire blood in my system? Maybe I don't want to become a bloodsucker." He sneered.

"You won't." Damon assured him. "Nobody wants to waste the time and energy to kill you. Apart from my brother in ripper mode." He shrugged. "You think too highly of yourself." He said as he walked over to Laura and put his arm around her waist.

Although Laura almost agreed with Damon, she knew that Elena wouldn't, which meant glaring at Damon angrily until he apologized.

"Correction, anyone who wants to piss off Elena might want to kill you." He smirked, causing Laura to roll her eyes.

"Can we get back to the point?" Caroline huffed.

"Yeah, to make a reusable stake, she's binding the wood to the Gilbert ring." Damon nodded. "She didn't exactly say how she was going to do it, but just that she was going to merge the stake with the ring so that it doesn't get destroyed after it kills an original." He said.

"Has Ric still got the ring?" Laura asked Damon who nodded. "Jeremy has the other ring. So at least she's not going after my brother, yet." She said.

"Kol is guarding him." Klaus reminded her.

"Fat lot of good that'll do with an unbeatable Original with an indestructible stake." Damon shook his head. "It also means we're a ring short."

"I could make another one." Bonnie offered.

Laura looked at Bonnie in surprise. It had never occurred to her while watching the show, why Bonnie didn't try and make another ring.

"You sure?" Laura asked.

"It's all in Emily's grimoire." Bonnie said. "I just need the ring to be silver and black onyx." She told them.

"Why do we need another ring?" Damon asked.

"For Ric, Matt, the Sheriff and mayor Lockwood." Laura suggested, remembering Klaus would try to kill Carol, although that situation might now have been averted. "Whoever needs one at the time depending on what trouble is on the horizon." She said.

"Sheriff Forbes definitely needs one. This town would fall apart without her." Damon agreed.

"I can provide the rings." Elijah offered.

"Fine, I'll make however many you want." Bonnie smiled. "Will four be enough?" she asked.

Everyone looked at each other and nodded. Caroline smiled at Laura sweetly, clearly the offer of protecting her mom had mellowed her a little.

"That covers everyone we know and love." Laura said. "If Esther links Ric to any of those people, we can safely kill them and know it will destroy Ric." Laura said, her heart heavy.

"Come with me Bonnie." Elijah said. "We need to get those rings made now." He told her as Bonnie and Elijah left to make the rings.

"We need to find a way to kidnap Ric too." Damon said.

"How?" Stefan asked. "Nobody can get into the tomb."

"Once we've taken down Mama Original, we kidnap Ric and Bonnie can do some of her witchy stuff to undo what fantasies Esther has been putting into his head." Damon said. "We're going to need a plan for that. I got Meredith Fell on board, she's going to tranquilize Ric so we can take him somewhere safe." He said.

"Like the basement?" Stefan asked.

"Yep!" Damon nodded. "We'll wake Barbie before we put him in there." He added.

"How are we going to catch Esther?" Laura asked.

"Elijah has a plan." Klaus told them. "He says it is better the less people know, the better." He shrugged.

"Has Esther told you where she is going to do the spell?" Caroline asked Damon.

"She said it would be on the site of where the witch Ayana is buried." Damon shrugged. "Now as the Original family came from these parts, I shall leave that to Klaus." He turned to Klaus.

"It is in the cemetery." Klaus told them. "I can show you." He said.

"Well I've got to go back to my Ric-sitting duties with Enzo." Damon told them. "I'll let you guys figure out between you, to find out where she is buried." He said as he picked up a few blood bags. "Need to get my strength up. Although, direct from the vein would be a better option." He smirked at Matt.

"I'm full of vervain." Matt replied smugly.

"Can't hurt to try." Damon shrugged.

"I'll go and locate the spot where Ayana is buried." Klaus said. "Caroline, would you please accompany me?" he asked as Stefan eyed Klaus suspiciously.

"Umm, well… I... I've got to get back to working on the decade dance." Caroline said.

Laura had an idea. She wanted Stefan and Caroline to get together more quickly and at least have time together. Klaus could be an opportunity to get Stefan jealous. Laura knew that despite dating a multitude of people, Caroline fell for Stefan the moment they met. It just took Stefan a long time to realize that Caroline was his true soulmate. Therefore, as soon as their problems with Esther were over, she had already decided she was going to make sure these two became an item. However, there was no time like the present to start her little plan.

"I can cover." Laura offered as Caroline glared at her. "I need to get used to being around people."

"I'm babysitting Damon while he's on rat duty." Stefan cocked his head towards Damon. "Unless you want to sit watching my brother sleep without killing him."

"And I've got to get back to the Grill." Matt apologized. "I told them I'd only be an hour at the most." He shrugged.

"Fine… fine…" Caroline huffed. "I'll do it."

Klaus grinned. "Good, let's get to work." He said.

Later that evening, Laura was just putting the finishing touches to her costume. She had opted for a red dress like the one from Saturday Night Fever. Unfortunately for her, Damon wasn't going to be her John Travolta as he wasn't a student at the school, plus he was on Ric sitting duty, while Elijah watched over him. Instead, she had to go with Stefan, who seemed a little too happy about that scenario for Laura's liking.

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs at the Salvatore house, Stefan was waiting for her.

"You're the perfect Stephanie." Stefan said.

Laura frowned in confusion. "We're not going as twins." She said, to which Stefan laughed.

"That's the name of the character in Saturday Night Fever." Stefan shook his head. "Her name is Stephanie. Just don't expect me to dance like Tony." He shuddered.

"I'm guessing Tony is John Travolta." Laura laughed. "You're not dressed like him, so I'll give you a pass." She rolled her eyes at his costume, which wasn't much different to his normal attire. He wore dark blue straight legged jeans and a black sweater. "You don't look very seventies; in fact, these are your normal clothes." She frowned.

"Chief Brody from Jaws." Stefan grinned. "Go look it up." He smirked as Laura shook her head in dismay.

"Let's go." She sighed as they headed towards the decade dance.

All the way to the dance, Laura had a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach that something was going to happen. Although Esther tried to turn Ric on the show, as circumstances had changed, she might have decided to turn him the next day with the full moon. Yet, deep down, she knew something bad was going to happen. To make matters worse, the thought of leaving Damon made her feel sick to the stomach with worry.

When they got there, the music was already pumping out through the speakers. People dressed in bright costumes, with some decidedly odd wigs wandered around, drinking punch, which Laura suspected was probably spiked. Just in case it wasn't, she and Stefan had managed to sneak in a hip flask each, just to help them with their cravings.

When Laura heard the lyrics 'Burn baby burn, disco inferno.'; she tried to get Stefan to dance, however, he refused to budge, therefore Laura ended up dancing with Bonnie, which was fine as they hadn't had a chance to talk since the meeting earlier in the day.

"Did you mange to spell the rings?" Laura asked.

Bonnie nodded, before looking around to check Caroline and Stefan were far enough away to not hear them.

"That's not all we were doing." Bonnie said. "I was trying out some herbal mix on Elijah, to see if I could knock him unconscious." She explained. "I'm not sure if we can stop Esther. It might be better to let her turn Ric, then keep him contained." She said.

"How?" Laura frowned.

"Elijah and I have a plan." Bonnie said. "But the less people know about it, the better." She smirked.

"I won't tell." Laura shook her head.

"Esther didn't have a liter of your blood before." Bonnie explained. "She can draw power from it, which means she can do the spell tonight. And she can also jump into the body of other people. She won't jump into mine as I've worked out how to fight her off. But everyone else is vulnerable. So no, I can't tell you the plan." She shrugged.

"Esther will put a salt boundary around the school to make sure no vampire can escape." Laura panicked. "We need to get out of here." She said.

"You never mentioned the boundary spell." Bonnie's eyes widened, as Laura's felt her phone vibrate.

She unlocked her phone to see a message from Damon.

_Esther and Ric have left the tomb. I'm on my way!_

Laura looked up at Bonnie. "Looks like you were right. She's going the spell tonight. We need to go." She said.

"Where's Caroline." Bonnie looked around the room. "Klaus showed her where Ayana was buried.

They searched the room and found Caroline dancing with Tyler. Laura looked over to Stefan and beckoned him over, holding her phone in the air to make sure he knew she wasn't asking him to dance. Laura and Bonnie pulled Caroline and Tyler off the dancefloor, over to a quiet corner where Stefan stood waiting.

"Where did Klaus take you?" Bonnie asked.

"He took me to the Salvatore crypt." Caroline told them. "Apparently Ayana is buried under there." She said.

"Where is Klaus?" Laura looked around. "I thought he'd be lurking somewhere." She said.

"No idea." Caroline shrugged. "He said he'd be here." She said.

Laura looked at everyone in panic. "Let's hope we get to Esther and Ric in time, because I suspect Klaus might be number one on her hit list." She said. "Take him out and that leaves Rebekah and Elijah vulnerable." She said.

"Let's get out of here." Stefan said. "Our plan for you to turn her won't work. Damon might be able to do it, but I doubt he can take her on all by himself." He said.

They all rushed outside; however, they didn't get very far as Laura ran into what felt like an invisible wall. She wasn't alone, only Bonnie was able to cross the barrier.

"Fuck! Were stuck!" Tyler cried.

"Where's Matt?" Laura asked. "He's got a ring, right?" she turned to Bonnie.

"He was over by the punchbowl." Caroline said. "I'll get him." She disappeared off back into the school. Just as Damon turned up.

"Stay there!" Laura stopped him before he crossed the line. "We can't get out. Only Bonnie and probably Matt can help." She said.

"Great." Damon winced. "A busboy, a doctor and a newbie witch." He shook his head. "We're screwed!"

"I'm not new." Bonnie argued.

"Compared to Esther you are." Damon disagreed as Caroline and Matt arrived.

"Let's go." Damon said. "Blondie, where am I going?" he asked.

"The Salvatore crypt." Caroline replied.

"Thanks." Damon smiled as he turned to leave.

"Wait, Damon!" Stefan called out. "Klaus is missing."

"Call Liz, ask to send out a search party." Damon sighed. "Oh, keep calling barbie Klaus until she wakes up. Tell her where we are and to come and help take her mom down."

"Damon." Laura called out. "Be careful. I love you." She smiled wistfully.

"I always am." Damon grinned. "And I love you too." He said as they all turned and disappeared into the night.


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Only moments after Damon had left, Laura's phone rang, she checked the caller ID.

"It's Ric." She looked to Stefan and Caroline as she answered the phone. "Ric, are you okay?" Laura asked.

"Well hello Laura, it's nice to hear your voice again, or should I say Elena's voice." Ric said as Caroline and Stefan looked at her confused, clearly able to hear the conversation.

"I… I have no idea what you mean." Laura frowned.

"Oh, sure you do." Ric replied. "You are Laura Jennings, and you've been inside Elena Gilbert's body and pretending to be her for the last few weeks." He said evilly.

"That's not true!" Laura protested as Stefan and Caroline both looked at each other before eyeing Laura with suspicion.

"Look Laura, I know all about you, Esther told me." Ric cooed. "You are a forty-year-old high school history teacher, kinda like me. You swapped bodies with Elena, then you decided to become a vampire and fell in love with Damon. You also knew the future too, although that has changed as Elena didn't become a vampire the same way you did." He continued. "Bonnie, Abby and Elijah all knew, yet said nothing. You even slept with Damon without telling him that he wasn't actually with the Elena he loved, he was having sex with a total stranger."

Laura looked up at Caroline and Stefan, who both had their arms folded and their faces were staring back at her angrily.

"What is he talking about Elena?" Caroline asked.

"What do you want Ric?" Laura demanded.

"Ooh, feisty." Ric said with a smirk in his voice. "But, it's not what I want, I'm calling on behalf of Esther. You see, she wants you to come down to the Salvatore crypt." He told her.

"I can't." Laura said. "She sealed us all into the school."

"She's going to let you out." Ric told her. "She's on her way to the school now." He said. "Only you can get out though."

"What does she want with me?" Laura asked. "I'm no good to her as a vampire."

"That's where you are wrong." Came Esther's voice.

"I'll let Esther explain." Ric said. "See you in a few minutes." He added before hanging up.

"What do you want Esther?" Laura asked.

"I need the essence of your soul." Esther replied. "There's a little part of Laura I need to join with Elena's blood. You played into my hands becoming a vampire. It would have been harder for me to take your essence while you were human, but as a vampire, it requires far less work." She smiled as she stepped over the barrier.

"Are you going to kill me?" Laura asked, wide-eyed with fear.

Esther laughed and shook her head. "No, my dear, although you might wish I had. There are a few… side effects." She smiled.

"You can't tie his life to mine!" Laura stated.

"Don't worry, I'm not." Esther said. "Abby helped me tie him to another." She explained.

"Abby?" Laura looked at Esther in confusion. "Why would she do that?"

"Did I say she had a choice?" Esther raised an eyebrow. "Now, if you don't come with me, I will kill your friend Matt." She warned. "That is assuming you actually care about him. Elena did, but you might not care so much." She smirked. "Here, take my hand. I can take you to Ric." She said.

Laura looked to Stefan and Caroline, who were still looking at her angrily.

"Esther and Ric have only told you part of the truth." Laura told them. "The doppelganger body and soul are born separately." She said before turning to Stefan. "This would have happened to you too, as you are also a doppelganger." She told him. "You are the doppelganger of Silas; I am the doppelganger of Amara. You never got the chance to merge with your true soul as you turned before you were eighteen." She said. "Don't hate me, I'm only merging with Elena, I'm not impersonating her, because she is me and I am her." Laura turned to Esther. "I'll go with you." She sighed, as she took Esther's hand.

Esther walked them across the boundary and towards the cemetery. All the way there, Laura stayed silent. No doubt Stefan was going to tell Damon about what Esther had said, she just hoped he would forgive her and Bonnie for their secret.

By the time they got to the crypt, they were alone.

"Where's Ric?" Laura asked.

"Hidden." Esther smiled.

Laura looked around. "What about Matt? I thought you had him." She frowned.

"I have all of your friends." Esther smiled as she waved her hands and muttered some words under her breath.

Suddenly Damon, Klaus, Elijah, Bonnie, Abby, Matt and Meredith appeared on the floor at the back of the crypt, all of them tied up and unconscious."

"What did you do to them?" Laura cried.

"Just a little bit of a magical sleep, nothing more." Esther smiled. "Using Elena's blood and your essence, allows me to perform a little bit of extra magic." She said. "It cannot last. Your plan to turn me into a vampire is pointless. I will die after I complete the spell as my magic will have run out." She said sadly. "Everything you did to stop Ric becoming a vampire has been in vain. Not only that, but you won't even remember what you tried to do to stop it." She flashed her eyes evilly.

"What do you mean?" Laura asked, suddenly scared.

"You will find out soon enough." Esther smiled, as she brought out the white oak stake, which had already been turned into the invincible weapon.

"Where's Ric?" Laura looked around.

"Here!" Ric said as he emerged out of thin air.

"Ric, this isn't what you want. It's not who you are." Laura cried.

"You don't know who I am, Laura." Ric spat. "You only know the weakest parts of me, the man who lost his way befriending vampires instead of killing them. You watched a TV show. How could you really know?"

"You don't mean that." Laura pleaded.

"They're all monsters, you included. The blood of their victims is on my hands. Jenna's blood is on my hands." Ric said angrily as Esther began to walk around the crypt, lighting candles as she prepared for the spell.

"What did you do to him?" Laura asked.

"I did nothing. I simply had him cloaked." Esther told her. "That was how he managed to knock this lot out. Although I had already done the work with Abby." She shrugged. "He drugged them, but it won't last for long. They will wake as soon as I am gone." She said.

"And when you are gone, you won't be able to interfere anymore?" Laura asked.

"No." Esther shook her head sadly, however, Laura didn't believe her. "But now, we must create the last part of the spell to turn Ric into an Original." She smiled.

Esther poured what looked like blood from two different vials into a large goblet. She then turned to Laura, and an excruciating pain shot through her head. She collapsed to the floor as Esther held her hand up, clearly giving Laura one of her witchy headaches.

"Aargh…" Laura cried.

Esther walked over to Laura with the stake in her hand and placed her other hand on Laura's head. Although the pain immediately disappeared, Laura found she couldn't move. Esther muttered some more words before lifting Laura's hand and cutting it open with the stake, coating it in Laura's blood. Clearly satisfied there was enough blood on the stake, Esther removed her hand from Laura's head, and she fell to the ground, struggling to breathe as she recovered from the pain. Esther stirred the mixture on the goblet once more and handed it to Ric.

"When you are ready." Esther said to Ric, who picked up the goblet.

"No Ric, please don't. Don't do this." Laura managed to cry from the floor as she tried in vain to get up.

"Drink. And let it be done." Esther told Ric.

"No Ric please, don't do it. No!" Laura begged as Alaric picked up the goblet and drank the contents of the bowl and put it back down again.

"Is it finished?" Ric asked.

"Not just yet." Esther smiled as she picked up the indestructible white oak stake and stabbed Ric in the chest with it.

"No!" Laura cried out, suddenly finding her strength, and able to get up.

She rushed over to Esther and snapped her neck. The Original witch fell to the ground and disappeared into thin air. Laura looked over to Ric, who was still gasping for air. She rushed to his side and bit her wrist, to try to prevent him from dying, however, it was too late. He took his last breath before she got chance to put her hand to his mouth. Laura checked for a pulse, but there was none. She closed her eyes and started to cry.

To the side of her, Laura heard movement. She looked up and could see everyone starting to wake up, looking around, perplexed at what had happened. At the same time, more noise was heard outside as Stefan, Caroline and Tyler appeared at the entrance of the crypt. Laura got up and ran over to Damon to untie him, however, he simply glared at her, clearly not wanting her help. Instead he turned to Stefan who did the honors, so instead, Laura untied Bonnie.

Once everyone was free of their ropes, they all left the crypt and stood outside, waiting for Ric to wake back up. Damon spoke first.

"What the fuck is going on?" he asked angrily. "And who exactly are you?"

Laura took a deep breath, ready to explain, however, Elijah stepped to her defense.

"It is probably best I explain." Elijah addressed the group.

"Why?" Damon frowned.

"Because I fully understand what has happened to Elena." Elijah told them. "It happens to all doppelgangers who live beyond the age of eighteen." He said. "Doppelganger souls are born before their bodies. They live to around the age of forty. About that time, their true body will turn eighteen. The soul lives the life the body would have lived should she have not experienced other supernatural creature." He explained. "Laura entered Elena's body with the gift of hindsight and knowing what would happen in the immediate future. However, I must reiterate, she is the same person. Within the next year, Laura will not know who Laura Jennings was. She will forget her previous life as her body continues with the merge process."

"She said it would have happened to me." Stefan said flatly.

"Stefan in the Silas doppelganger." Laura told Elijah.

"Ah…" Elijah smiled. "Silas was the very first immortal being. He wasn't a vampire as such, but he is immortal. At least we know what his face looks like." He smiled.

"We slept together." Damon looked at Laura in disgust. "You hadn't completed the merge, yet you still…" he shook his head and walked off.

"Damon… wait…" Laura called out and ran after him, until she eventually caught up with him. "Listen to me." She said, taking his face her hands, causing Damon to flinch, sending what felt like a knife into her hear. "Yes, I changed things. But I never did anything which Elena wouldn't, or didn't do."

"You turned voluntarily. Did Elena?" Damon asked.

Laura looked down and shook her head. "No." she replied.

"Then you didn't do what Elena would have done." He snapped as he once more tried to leave, but Laura wasn't having it.

"Elena was always destined to become a vampire." Laura told him. "If I hadn't intervened, she would have turned tomorrow night." She said.

"Why did you change it?" Damon asked.

"Because Elena loved you too much, even though she wouldn't admit it, or didn't quite grasp the distinction between loving someone and being in love with someone." She told him. "Your blood turned her, and she ended up being sired to you. It set off a chain of events with awful consequences. Although you and Bonnie became great friends." She added as an afterthought.

"That doesn't mean you would be sired to me." Damon scowled.

"When I first got here, that would have been true. I wanted Elena to end up with Stefan, not you." Laura admitted. "But when I became Elena, I discovered what it felt like to be her. I could feel some of her emotions. She was already in love with you when I merged with her. That began to mix with my feelings until it got to the point where I was concerned that I would also be sired to you. I couldn't let that happen." She shook her head. "At the same time, I was desperately trying to stop Esther turning Ric. "I thought if I turned before she turned Ric, then she wouldn't be able to do it. But I was wrong." She sighed. "If Elena thought the only way to help Ric was to turn, she would have done it. Am I wrong?" Laura asked.

Damon took a deep breath. "She'd have done what you did." He admitted. "What happened to Elena?" he asked.

Laura took a deep breath. "She told me to look after you. She entered my body, which then died." She cast her eyes down. "She's now in the body of another doppelganger, one who is days old. They live over and over again, every time the doppelganger reaches the age of eighteen, the soul is swapped, and the cycle starts over again. If I hadn't have merged into her body, she wouldn't have lived for much longer. The only difference between me and Elena, is I have hindsight of her future." She said.

"Did Elena and I have a future?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Laura nodded. "You… _we_ are soulmates Damon." She emphasized the word 'we'. "That is why I fell in love with you exactly as Elena did. I am Elena with hindsight and an extra twenty-two extra years of life experience."

"Look Ele… Laura, or whoever you are. I need time to deal with this." Damon shook his head. "Things can't just go back to the way they were." He said.

"I know." Laura nodded sadly. "But in the meantime, Ric needs you." She said. "And we need to work out what to do with him before he destroys all vampires. You and me included." She said.

"Did Bonnie and Elijah know about all of this?" Damon asked, clearly more comfortable with this topic.

"Yeah." Laura nodded. "When Ric wakes up, he'll be himself for a while. He'll try not to turn. But although Esther said she'd gone and used up all of her magic, I don't fully believe her. She hijacked Bonnie's body in the night and Bonnie fed him her blood. Even if Esther doesn't target Bonnie, she could get anyone to do it." She told him.

"Then I'll watch him." Damon nodded.

"You won't be able to help." Laura shook her head. "She can get inside anyone's body. If she does, she'll still be able to do magic and she can still take you down." She told him.

"So, what do you want me to do?" Damon asked.

"For now, just be his friend." Laura told him. "I'm not sure if we can prevent him from turning. What we need to do is get the Originals as far away from him as possible. Then come up with a plan to destroy him."

"You mean kill Ric?" Damon frowned.

"If we have to." Laura nodded. "Once he turns, he's not Ric anymore. He will become and absolute monster." She warned. "Elijah and Bonnie have been planning things behind my back. They might have come up with a solution." She said as Damon nodded.

They turned back to the crypt and walked back in an awkward silence. Laura was desperate to put her arms around Damon and kiss him, hoping his anger would dissipate, but she knew that was a bad idea. His focus needed to be on Ric, who might even offer words of advice, now he was the real Ric, even if it was only for a short period of time.

When they arrived back at the crypt, everyone was stood around waiting for them. Both Klaus and Elijah had disappeared, which didn't surprise Laura as she knew they needed to get away from Ric when he woke up. Laura walked over to Bonnie, who gave her a reassuring hug, as she looked back over to Damon with tears in her eyes.

"Can I stay with you?" Laura whispered into Bonnie's ear.

"Sure." Bonnie nodded.

At that moment, Ric emerged from the crypt, looking confused.

"What happened?" he asked. "The last thing I remember, was being at the loft." He frowned.

"That was about two weeks ago Ric." Damon shrugged as Laura ran up to Ric and hugged him.

"What's going on?" Ric asked.

"Let's go back inside the crypt, we need to talk." Laura said as Damon followed.

"Esther put a spell on you." Damon told him, once they were inside. "She's turning you into an invincible Original vampire, trained to kill everyone, especially Originals." He said. "You're in transition."

"Why would I agree to that?" Ric asked.

"Every time you died, Esther spoke to you, turning you against vampires and creating an alternate you." Laura explained. "All of the hate you feel towards vampires became magnified and she used it to brainwash you. When you complete the transition, you will become the ultimate vampire hunter." She said.

"Then I won't complete the transition!" Ric said determinedly.

"I don't think it's that simple Ric." Damon sighed. "Esther will make sure you do." He said.

"Don't worry, we're going to find a way to work it out." Laura assured him. "Bonnie and Elijah already knew of Esther's plans, hopefully they've worked out a backup plan." She said.

"And if you can't find a way around it?" Ric asked.

"We will!" Laura insisted.

"If you don't, then promise me, you will kill me." Ric insisted as Damon and Laura looked at each other before nodding in agreement.

Tears began to spill from Laura's eyes. "We'll do everything we can to save you." She promised, as she hugged him once more.

"I know." Ric told her before looking up at Damon. "Look after her for me." He said as Damon looked at Laura awkwardly before nodding.

"I will." He agreed.

"And Jeremy too." Ric smiled.

"Of course." Damon swallowed, clearly struggling to hold back his emotions.

"I need some time to be alone." Ric frowned as both Laura and Damon nodded, leaving the crypt.

Ric followed and looked at the crowd gathered outside. Everyone had tears in their eyes as he was someone, they all loved. Ric smiled sadly at everyone individually.

"Goodbye everyone." He said. "No matter what happens, I still love you all." He told them, before going back inside crypt and closing the door after him.

Laura couldn't take anymore. She had to leave; everything was too much for her to bear. She stormed off and headed towards the Salvatore house, deciding she needed to pack her things and leave. She knew that for the time being, she wasn't going to be wanted there, which was why she'd asked Bonnie if she could stay with her.

As soon as she reached Damon's room, she began to pack her things as quickly as possible. All the while tears streaming down her cheeks. She'd failed to keep Ric safe. They were probably all going to die, and Damon hated her. She wished she'd never merged with Elena in the first place.

To make matters worse, Laura was feeling light-headed. She couldn't remember the last time she fed, but she was sure it couldn't have been that long ago. However, she was feeling weaker and weaker by the second. Eventually she decided she needed to take a break from packing and raid Damon's blood supply for the final time.

Laura slowly walked down to the basement, noticing Rebekah's body was gone. She headed over to the fridge to get a bag, however, she never managed to open it. Instead she found she couldn't breathe. Laura clutched her throat, making gasping sounds in the process. At the same time, the room went dark, and the world around her disappeared.


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura could feel the warmth of the sun on her face. She didn't want to open her eyes because she was so comfortable in her warm soft bed. Fortunately, her alarm hadn't gone off yet, and she didn't want to know the time, because she could continue to snuggle in bed a little longer and pretend there was no school that day. She also noticed her headache from the previous night had disappeared. Content she could stay in bed a little longer, she took a deep breath, it was then she noticed something wasn't quite right.

Firstly, the scent in her room was wrong. Instead of the scent of her fabric conditioner which she could normally smell on her sheets, there was a sexy masculine undertone, to which she couldn't place. The next thing she could smell was something delicious, like the smell of baking bread, or toast, or ginger, Laura couldn't work it out; but whatever it was, it was warm and welcoming. Finally, Laura realized the sun was hitting her from the wrong direction.

At that moment, Laura felt her bed dip, as if someone was sitting on it. She knew it couldn't be Rosie as the weight was far too heavy. She turned her head in the direction of where the person was sat and opened her eyes. She expected to maybe see her mom say at the edge of the bed, however, instead, she was met with the face of a man who had piercing blue eyes and raven hair framing his far too beautiful face. A face who's beauty, in Laura's eyes, belied the evil beneath the surface.

"Laura?" the man whispered. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.

Laura's jaw dropped in shock; the man sat on her bed was Damon Salvatore. In fact, this wasn't even her bed, it was his. For some reason, Laura was in Damon's bed. She lifted her hand to her neck, expecting him to have bit her. Damon frowned at her response.

"Laura?" Damon said, his voice full of confusion.

Out of fear, Laura simply screamed.

Suddenly there was a rush of footsteps and people gathered in the room.

"What did you do Damon?" came the voice of Caroline Forbes.

"Nothing, she took one look at me and screamed." He protested.

"Maybe she's got her common sense back after all." Caroline said sarcastically.

Laura looked at the people gathered in the room. Every one of them was a character from the Vampire Diaries. There was Damon, Stefan, Caroline, Bonnie, Matt, Tyler and Elijah. Laura thought carefully for a moment and decided she must be in some weird ass dream.

"Okay, so I'm in a freaky dream." Laura frowned as everyone turned to look at her.

Bonnie looked at Laura confused. "Laura, what was the last thing you remember?" she asked.

"I went to bed with a headache after watching The Vampire Diaries. Although I admit I'd had some wine." She said, confused as to why the dream felt so real.

"Shit!" Bonnie swore. "She's forgotten everything."

"What do you mean?" Damon frowned.

"Whatever Esther did to her must have wiped her memories." Bonnie replied.

"Esther? What do you mean?" Laura looked at everyone in confusion.

"I think it's best if Elijah and I talk to Laura." Bonnie said to the rest of the group.

"I'm not going anywhere." Damon folded his arms. "I want to know what the hell is going on. First of all, I find out my girlfriend isn't who I thought she was, now it seems she doesn't know who she is either."

"Well just listen and don't talk." Bonnie insisted as everyone else left the room.

Once gone, Laura looked under the sheets to check she was dressed decently enough to sit up. Fortunately, she was wearing a long black t-shirt and black boxer briefs, meaning she was safe enough to sit up. As she did, something felt odd, her hair; it felt longer than usual. She tipped her head to one side, and instead of seeing her normal blonde hair, chestnut tresses fell around her shoulders.

"What's going on?" Laura asked, suddenly feeling scared. Her dream was feeling far too real for her liking.

"It appears my mother has wiped away the last two months of your memory." Elijah told her. "You have reverted back to how you felt the day you first arrived in Elena's body."

"Elena's body?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Go look in the bathroom mirror." Damon sighed as Laura threw back the sheets and got out of bed.

Laura walked over to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Instead of her usual face and hair, looking back at her was the face of Elena Gilbert. It was the second time in ten minutes Laura screamed.

Bonnie came over to her and calmly walked her back to the bed. She then proceeded to explain to Laura about the Plane of Preparation, how doppelganger's are born with a host soul which mirrors the soul of the doppelganger who would be united when the body of the doppelganger turned eighteen. Laura wasn't the only one who was listening with interest, Damon was clearly very invested in this conversation, which was another point which confused Laura; Damon had referred to her as his girlfriend.

"So, let me get this straight, I've been here for two months." Laura said. "What happened?" she asked.

"You tell me what happens in the show." Elijah said.

"Between Klaus arriving at the school and forcing Stefan to turn off his humanity, and the end of season three." Bonnie clarified.

"Main points are Stefan becomes a pain in the ass for a few episodes." Laura told them "There are ghosts in Mystic Falls, where a way is discovered to kill Klaus. Mikael turns up and is killed by Klaus. Jeremy goes to Denver. Ric is manipulated by Esther, she turns him into an Original vampire, whose life is tied to Elena's. Elena and Damon go and get Jeremy back from Denver. Elena becomes a vampire because Rebekah runs her and Matt off Wickery Bridge, and Elena insists Stefan saves Matt before her. She has Damon's blood in her system and dies." She said. "Is that too many spoilers?" she asked sarcastically.

"That's not what happened." Damon frowned.

"What?" Laura asked.

"When you found out that you are Elena, you decided to change a few things." Bonnie told her.

"Did anything happen between me and Elena?" Damon asked.

"Umm… not much." Laura blushed. "You flirted a lot and kissed twice. That's all." She said.

"We only kissed." Damon raised an eyebrow. "What type of kiss?"

"Well one was very sweet." Laura frowned. "The other was more of a make-out session in Denver, but Jeremy interrupted." She said.

"Was there an ice machine involved?" Damon asked as Laura nodded. "Well I'm not going to hold those against you." He said. "At least Elena would have participated. But clearly the other stuff…" he shook his head.

"What other stuff?" Laura asked, confused.

"We slept together." Damon said angrily. "I thought you were Elena. You let me think Elena and I were…" he stopped, clearly too angry to go on.

"Why the hell would I sleep with you?" Laura cried out. "I hate you!"

"Well, you've got a funny way of showing it." Damon's eyes flashed. "You couldn't keep your hands off me."

"Laura and Elena are the same person." Bonnie yelled, trying to diffuse the atmosphere, however, it wasn't working, Laura and Damon just ignored her.

"I would never sleep with you!" Laura shook her head. "I wanted Elena to end up with Stefan. But no, the writers wanted to pander to the whims of the public. Then Nina left, making it impossible to get her and Stefan back together. So, the show killed Stefan off, and Damon and Elena walked off into the sunset, all human. Popped out a couple of kids, one they called Stefanie. This place turned into Hogwarts. Elena became a doctor. Damon and Elena died. Damon gave the cure to Rebekah. Damon and Elena lived all happy ever after in the afterlife with their families. While Caroline was left teaching at Hogwarts and was Stefan's widow." She said bitchily. "You stole Stefan's girlfriend. You are an ass!"

Damon looked at Laura in shock for a moment before retaliating. "Well clearly that's not going to happen now is it?" he spat.

"It abso-fucking-lutely never ever. I wouldn't touch you if you were the last man on earth." Laura shouted. "Get out!" she pointed to the door.

"This is my room." Damon stormed over to Laura and pressed up against her. "You get out." He growled in such a way, that Laura was suddenly scared. Yet at the same time, their arguing seemed to turn her on. His scent was what she had been able to smell when she woke, the tinged with and air of sex, something which seemed to be oozing out his every pore right now, accentuating her desire for him. Damon suddenly smirked, clearly able to smell the change in Laura's body, alerting him to her current state of arousal.

Confused and scared, Laura turned around and stormed out of the door, not having a clue how to get downstairs. She looked around, when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned around and saw Bonnie.

"Come back into the room." Bonnie pleaded. "Damon has promised to leave us alone for a while. He's just upset." She said.

"He's upset?" Laura's eyes widened. "I've just found out that not only am I stuck in the body of Elena Gilbert, but I slept with Damon before Elena did." She shook her head. "Was I compelled to?" she asked.

"Laura…" Bonnie took a deep breath. "You're a vampire." She said.

"I… I… I can't be a vampire." Laura frowned.

"Oh, but you are." Came Damon's mocking voice from behind her as Laura turned to look at him, wishing he didn't affect her like he did.

"You said you'd behave!" Bonnie warned Damon.

"I promise I'll be good." Damon lifted his hands in the air. "You guys go back inside. I need to get something; I won't be long." He smirked as he gave Laura a long look before heading down the hallway.

"I'll go with you." Elijah announced as they left Laura alone with Bonnie.

Bonnie grabbed Laura's arm and led her back inside Damon's bedroom.

"Look Laura." Bonnie said sternly. "You hated Damon just as much when you first met him. But within a couple of weeks you were falling for him. In no time, you were in love with him. You knew if you turned like in the show, you would still end up sired to him. So, you managed to convince Klaus to turn you instead." She said. "Laura Jennings fell in love with Damon because she is also Elena Gilbert. The difference is Laura has a lot more experience and confidence to know when to act on love than she would have done when she was eighteen. And I'm not blind, I saw the look you two gave each other, the spark hasn't disappeared. In fact, I'd have gone as far as to say, if Elijah and me, hadn't been there, you two would have ripped each other's clothes off and ended up in bed." She folded her arms.

Laura looked at Bonnie, speechless with shock at her perception.

"In fact, I'd go as far as to say, I think that body has zero self-control in the presence of Damon Salvatore. Although he's no better." She shook her head. "I would even guess, that by the time we've sorted out all of our problems, you and Damon are in love once again."

"All of our problems?" Laura asked, confused by the comment.

"Your memory loss is because of Esther." Bonnie told her. "Things happened very differently to the show."

"How do you know about all of this?" Laura frowned.

"You confided in me." Bonnie told her. "Elijah already knew what would happen to you, as he knew a lot about doppelganger's. So, between the four of us, including my mom, we've been trying to stop Esther from turning Ric. It was one of the reasons you turned, so that she couldn't tie his life to yours." She said,

"And did she still turn him?" Laura asked.

Bonnie nodded. "She tied his life to someone else's. then inhabited the body of a random guy, who suddenly appeared in the crypt and Ric fed on him, or her. Damon tried to stop it, but Esther was inside the guy's body, so she gave him a headache." She said.

"And where is Ric right now?" Laura asked.

"Nobody knows." Bonnie shrugged as Damon walked in with a couple of glasses and two blood bags.

"Lunch is served." He said sarcastically as he handed Laura a glass and a blood bag.

"Gross. I'm not…" Laura started, however, the scent of the blood hit her nose and she suddenly changed her mind.

Instead of the coppery smell she was used to, the blood reminded her of all of the most wonderful food she could imagine. In fact, it was the other scent she picked up when she woke up. Suddenly she felt a tingling sensation around her eyes and a strange sensation in her gums.

"Bonnie." Damon said in a warning tone. "Let me deal with Ele… Laura." He said. "Leave the room. She's new and has no control." He said.

"Fine!" Bonnie said. "I'll be right outside." She told Laura, who nodded, although her entire focus was this one single bloodbag.

"Why could I smell this when I woke up?" Laura looked at Damon inquisitively.

"Because Matt was here." Damon told her. "You've been using him as your personal juice-box, to learn how to feed. As well as drinking my blood." He lowered his eyes.

"We blood-shared?" Laura asked as Damon nodded. "Isn't that some kinky shit that happens between two vampires who are in love?" she asked.

"Something like that." Damon said uncomfortably. "Now are you going to sit staring at that all day, or are you going to drink it?" he asked.

Laura examined the bag. "How do I…" she started.

"Here, let me." Damon said softly, taking the blood bag from her and opening it. He poured some into a glass and handed it to her. "Drink up." He told her. "I think Esther's spell might have drained you. Plus, you haven't fed since this morning." He said.

"Thank you." Laura smiled at him gratefully and drank the delicious liquid down in one go. Suddenly she felt stronger, more alert, but not full.

"More?" Damon asked, and Laura nodded as he poured more into her glass.

Swiftly, she dispersed of the contents, which made her feel much better. "I'm sorry." Laura cast her eyes down.

"For what?" Damon asked.

"For sleeping with you and not telling you I wasn't Elena." Laura said sadly.

"It's okay." Damon smiled. "Elijah explained to me why." He said.

"Why?" Laura frowned.

"You still have Elena's feelings, and as time progresses, you begin to forget Laura. You morph into Elena. You're in a type of doppelganger transition. It happens to every doppelganger and it's not your fault. Your feelings were exactly what Elena passed over to you. The longer you were in her body, the stronger they became, until one day, Laura Jennings will no longer exist." He sighed. "I just have to accept for the time being, that you are an older version of Elena." He said.

"Is that the only thing you noticed?" Laura asked as Damon opened another blood-bag and poured some more blood into her glass, before filling the other glass for himself.

Damon smirked. "Your reaction to me was the same as Elena's." he told her. "Your scent told me a lot more about you than your words." He said, taking a sip of blood.

Laura blushed. "Look, right now, my feelings for you haven't merged, although it appears this body can't control itself around you."

"Clearly." Damon struggled to hide his laughter. "Your body remembers what your mind doesn't. pity." He shook his head. "The sex was incredible."

"Damon…" Laura warned.

"I get it." Damon nodded. "But in a few weeks, you'll feel the same way about me as you did before. Except this time, I know the truth about you. If we are meant to be together, nature will take its course." He said. "Also, you are going to have to learn how to feed again." He said. "Blood bags are fine, but you need to know how to react around the real stuff, straight from the vein. You've been learning from being around Matt because you have an emotional connection to him and that makes you less likely to attack him." He told her. "How do you feel about him now?" he asked.

"Seriously?" Laura raised an eyebrow. "I don't particularly give a shit about Matt Donovan. He's boring and annoying." She shrugged.

"I'm liking you more and more every minute." Damon smirked. "How about the bunny diet?" he asked.

Laura shook her head. "I couldn't hurt an innocent animal." She told him. "I've got a dog." She said as suddenly she longed to see Rosie. "You know Damon, I really hope this is a dream. I want to see my mom and Rosie." She said sadly.

"Look, when we've dealt with the Ric problem, I'll take you out somewhere to learn how to feed safely." He promised. "And if you're good, I'll get you a dog." He rolled his eyes. "Just don't let it go anywhere near Stefan." He warned.

"It's okay." Laura smiled, when she suddenly had an idea. "I'm guessing you'd be taking me to Whitmore College." She said.

"I hadn't thought about it." Damon frowned. "But it's a good place to start." He said.

"Enzo is still alive." Laura told him. "He didn't die in the fire." She said.

"What?" Damon looked at her in shock. "Are you certain it is the same one?" he asked.

"Cute, dark hair, British accent." Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Well I wouldn't know about the cute part, but the rest sounds like him." Damon admitted. "I take it you know everything about what happened." He cast his eyes down.

"I do." Laura nodded. "Maybe we could get him out." She suggested. "And maybe, we can play cupid with him and Bonnie." She smiled.

"What?" Damon cried.

"Shh!" Laura put her finger to Damon's lips. "I don't know if Bonnie knows."

"Okay, my lips are sealed." Damon nodded.

"I think I really ought to face everyone." Laura sighed, as her eyes caught sight of Damon's lips, and she suddenly had an urge to kiss them. She shook her head. "Wow, I'm definitely turning into Elena." She added as Damon laughed.

"Elijah told me the more things that changed, the quicker you'll morph into Elena as you'll have no reference points." Damon said. "He also told me this was happening to Katherine when they first met. Sometimes she'd be confused when people called her Katerina. But she won't remember any of that now." He shrugged. "I'll get your clothes from the closet and let you change in private." He smiled as he disappeared into his closet and retrieved some of Elena's clothes before leaving the room.

Once he'd gone, Laura sat alone on the bed, taking in all she had just discovered. She still believed she was in some weird ass dream, but she decided to go with the flow for the time being and help them with their Ric problem. She got dressed and left the room, initially wondering how she was going to get downstairs, when she decided instead to use her vampire skills. She sniffed the air for Damon's scent, and found out where it was strongest. Eventually she found the grand staircase, and made her way downstairs, before following the noise and into the parlor.

As soon as Laura appeared, the chatter stopped as everyone looked at her in a cross between shock and curiosity. Only Damon, Bonnie and Elijah seemed to be unperturbed by her arrival.

"Hey guys." Laura smiled, deciding that she was going to address the situation as she would a classroom. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell everyone about what was happening. I've been told that I was merging with Elena so quickly, that it wasn't going to become an issue. But it seems that Esther has done something to my recent memory and the last thing I knew was going to bed after wine, pizza and a TV binge. So, although it appears there have been some changes, and I know this as I'm already turning into Elena, I can feel her emotions; I can still remember what happened on the show. I can tell you what I know happened after Ric turned. Whether he's changed his plans, we'll find out, but I think we're going to need a different way to tackle him, because what they did in the show didn't work." She said.

"What did work?" Caroline asked.

"Rebekah killed Elena as her life was tied to Ric. I'm guessing that's why I chose to become a vampire to try and prevent Esther from turning Ric." Laura said, looking to Bonnie who nodded in agreement.

"So, if Ric's life isn't tied to yours, then who's life is it tied to?" Stefan asked.

"Well, we need to find out as quickly as possible." Laura said. "Ric is one unbeatable vampire, killing the person who he is tied to is the only way." She shook her head.

"Actually, it's not." Bonnie smiled. "I made some invincibility rings with Elijah yesterday." She told her. "As long as the person who's life is tied to Ric's wears it and is killed by a supernatural being, it should kill Ric and the person comes out unscathed." She added.

"That doesn't solve the problem of saving Ric." Damon folded his arms.

"I'm working on it." Bonnie snapped at him as Laura had an idea.

"Maybe you could bring him back from the dead." Laura suggested. "Do a spell that makes you appear dead and you bring him back with you. We could try that before going on a killing spree where everyone survives." She said. "A spell similar to the one with the ghosts, except if we can reunite Ric with his body, he might become human again, or at least a functional vampire." She shrugged.

"If not?" Elijah asked.

"If we can get the muscle-power. Then we can try what was tried in the show, which was the spell Abby used on Mikael. We could take Ric down with that until we find another way." Laura offered.

"I think that is our best option." Elijah said.

"We'll need every Original on hand." Laura said. "In the show, only Klaus was involved, but if we have you and Rebekah to help, then there might be enough combined strength to take him down. We'll just need a human volunteer to have their heart stopped while Bonnie does the magic." She added as everyone turned to Matt.

"Why me?" he asked.

"Because you're the only human in the room." Damon said sarcastically. "Unless you want me to ask the Sheriff instead."

Matt sighed. "Fine, I'll do it." He said.

"Good." Laura smiled. "Maybe, once Ric is dealt with, it'll be time for me to wake up." She grinned. "Bonnie, do you have the spell?" she asked.

"No, but I do." Came Abby's voice from behind as everyone turned to see her at the doorway. "But I'm not sure if using Matt is a wise idea." She said.

"Why?" Caroline asked.

"Because Ric's life is tied to Matt's." she said.

"How do you know?" Laura frowned.

"Because Esther used my body to get the ingredients to turn Ric." Abby told them. "When I woke, I overheard them talking, and Matt's blood was mentioned." She said. "You'll need to find someone else, and fast." She added.

Laura thought for a moment, when she came up with an idea.

"In a later season, a witch had a neat little trick of magically snapping the necks of vampires." Laura said. "Do you think you could do that?" she asked.

"Don't give her ideas." Damon groaned.

"I could give it a try." Bonnie nodded. "I just need a volunteer." She said. "Damon?" she smirked.

"No Bonnie." Laura shook her head. "I'll do it. I mean, it was my idea." She said.

"I'll do it!" Damon insisted. "I'm older and stronger, it would be easier for her to target a new vampire than someone as strong as Ric." He glared at Laura.

"If that's the case, don't you think Bonnie should try on me?" Elijah suggested. "After all, I'm the closest thing you have to Alaric in strength."

"He's right." Bonnie nodded. "I need to try this out on an original vampire."

"Try me first." Damon insisted. "If you've got it right, then try it on Elijah." He said.

"Damon! Now is not the time to play Superman." Laura hissed, when suddenly Damon's neck twisted in an ugly fashion, followed by a snapping sound, before he fell to the floor, dead.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to shut him up!" Bonnie smirked as Laura glared at her. "He volunteered." Bonnie insisted.

"Now try it on me." Elijah said.

With a flick of her wrist, Bonnie did the same with Elijah, who's head turned too far around. His neck snapped and Elijah also fell to the floor.

"Looks like we've found our secret weapon." Stefan smiled as Laura suddenly had the urge to make sure Damon was okay.

She got down on her knees and rested his head on her lap, waiting for him to recover. It was at that moment Laura realized her connection with Damon must have been strong, if it were already pushing through her general dislike for him. Suddenly his eyelids fluttered, and his blue eyes stared right up at her. Laura breathed a sigh of relief. They stared into each other's eyes for a moment until Damon broke the silence.

"Hey Judgy." He said to Bonnie. "Next time you snap my neck. Make sure you do it when Laura is wearing less clothes and we are in my bedroom." He smirked.

"Ass!" Laura scowled as she pushed him off her lap, causing him to bang his head, as a result, the entire room of people burst into laughter as both Laura and Damon stood up.

"Yeah, I've got a sexy ass, and you love it." Damon growled seductively into her ear. "But we'll get to that later." He smirked.


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

The group eventually managed to formulate a plan. Bonnie was going to snap Ric's neck, while the Originals then held him down. They would stop his heart and desiccate him like how Abby did with Mikael. Only then would Bonnie try to find a way to save Ric. Right now, their priority was to stop him. The problem they had was that they needed to find him, and they needed Bonnie to do a locator spell on him.

"We need someone to go to Ric's loft and get something so that we can use it for me to do a locator spell." Bonnie told them.

"I'll go." Stefan offered.

"May I suggest that a human goes to retrieve an article for the spell?" Elijah interjected.

"I'll go." Matt offered.

"Ric's loft won't be safe." Caroline protested.

"Elena's house should be safe." Laura said. "He won't be able to get in there. He lives there, I mean shouldn't his toothbrush and stuff be there? Will those work?" she asked as Bonnie nodded.

"I've got an idea." Damon smiled. "Why don't we call Jeremy, tell him Elena's a vampire and ask him to invite all of us in."

Laura looked at Damon in shock. "Really?" she asked, trying not to laugh. "Jeremy's a va…" she started and then stopped, realizing that Jeremy hadn't become a supernatural hunter yet. "I don't think he'll invite everyone in." she shook her head. "And I don't want to tell him yet. Let me get my head around being a vampire and Elena Gilbert first of all." She said before turning to Bonnie. "Can you put a protection spell on the Salvatore house to prevent Ric from coming in?" she asked.

"As long as I've got something of his, yeah." Bonnie nodded.

"So, we need something of Ric's for the locator spell _and_ the protection spell." Damon nodded. "Well Quarterback, it looks like you finally have a purpose in life." He smirked. "But considering your track record, I think a bit of help might be needed to make sure you don't screw it up." He said getting out his phone.

"Who are you calling?" Stefan asked.

"The most dependable person in town." Damon shrugged. "The Sheriff. She can make sure Matt gets in and out safely." He said.

"I don't think she'll be able to take on Ric." Laura shook her head.

"Will Ric kill her?" Damon asked as Laura frowned.

"Esther didn't want to make another killer." Laura told him. "Blood is the lifeline of immortality, but Ric isn't immortal. His desire to kill is only in relation to vampires, not humans. I'm not saying he won't kill a human who is in his way of killing a vampire, but he won't kill one for food. I'm guessing animal blood might be enough as that was what Esther intended for the Originals." She said, turning to Elijah. "Am I right about that?" she asked.

"My mother was somewhat, disappointed when we began to drink human blood." Elijah agreed. "At first we fed from animal blood, but once we discovered what human blood tasted like and it made us feel, our diet changed." He nodded. "I do not believe it was my mother's intention to make us killers."

"I'm not letting you put my mom in danger!" Caroline argued.

"Fine." Damon backed down, something which didn't surprise Laura as she knew Damon cared deeply about Liz.

"I'll be fine to go alone." Matt insisted. "He's not going to hurt me if his life is tied to mine, is he?" he asked.

"Not, but it makes you a target for him." Caroline shook her head. "Matt needs protection too." She said.

"We're running short on humans." Damon shook his head.

"What about Meredith?" Laura asked. "He'd never suspect her."

"Fine!" Damon said. "She's got to come here anyway." He shrugged. "But she doesn't know her way around your house." he said, picking up the phone to call Meredith.

"Let her break into Ric's loft." Stefan suggested. "Ric can't get in as he's not invited." He said as there was a noise announcing the arrival of Klaus and Rebekah.

"I'm assuming you want something belonging to Ric." Klaus smirked as he threw a couple of shirts over to Bonnie. "I thought I'd stop off at his place, considering I already know my way around and as I've already been invited in."

"Thank you." Bonnie said as she picked the shirts up. "I'll place a spell on this house and tie it to tonight's full moon. He won't be able to get in while it's active, but everyone else can." Bonnie explained. "Then I'll do the locator spell." She said.

"He's probably at the school." Laura shrugged. "But that might have changed as he hasn't got Caroline to torture." She added.

"Again?" Caroline raised an eyebrow as Laura nodded.

"Guys, we don't have time for this." Bonnie told them, as she gathered five candles and placed them in a large circle on the desk, before lighting them with her mind.

"Meredith's on her way here." Damon announced.

"Good." Bonnie said as she took hold of one of Ric's shirts and pressed it to her chest. "I hope he doesn't mind me ruining this." She pricked her finger with the paper knife and smeared blood on the shirt, before she closing her eyes and beginning to chant; "Phasmatos uti in die plenae lunae reversurus est domum custodire ab hoc sanguinem bibit." She said before throwing the shirt in the middle of the circle. "Phasmatos uti in die plenae lunae reversurus est domum custodire ab hoc sanguinem bibit." She said as the lights flickered and the fire in the hearth rose, along with the flames of the candles. Suddenly the shirt burst into flames and disappeared into a pile of ash, which she threw into the fire.

"Is that it?" Damon asked as bonnie opened her eyes.

"It's done." She nodded. "We're safe from Ric in here for the day. We have to take him down by the time the full moon crests." Bonnie told them. "Then we can lock him in the basement after I've desiccated him." She said.

"Are you going to be okay with all of this magic?" Laura frowned. "Would it help to channel something?" she asked.

Bonnie frowned before looking over to Rebekah. "There should still be some residual magic inside the necklace." She said. "I can channel that. It should give me some extra power." She nodded, as Rebekah looked at her, clearly unhappy with what Bonnie wanted her to do.

"Hand it over little sister." Klaus said in a voice which, although sounded soft, it belied a menacing tone.

"Fine!" Rebekah snapped. "Have the stupid necklace!" she said as she removed it from her neck and threw it over to Bonnie.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door, and Damon left to answer it. Moments later, her returned with Meredith.

"Let's find Ric." Damon said.

"Can I have a map please?" Bonnie asked.

"This one is of Mystic Falls." Stefan told her as he

Bonnie cut her finger once more, allowing a couple of drops of blood to fall on the map. As she did, Stefan stepped away, clearly trying to avoid the smell of blood. Caroline walked over to him and put a reassuring hand on his arm, to which he smiled at her appreciatively.

"Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem." Bonnie chanted as she clutched Ric's shirt to her chest. "Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem." She chanted louder as the candles around them burned brighter.

Laura stretched her neck out to look over at what was happening on the map, which to her surprise, showed the blood moving, even if the location it stopped at didn't surprise her.

"You were right." Bonnie said to Laura. "He's at the school." She said.

"So, what's next Sabrina?" Damon asked, earning him a glare from Bonnie.

"We go get Ric." Bonnie said. "Mom, can you watch Matt?" she asked.

"I thought I was safe here." Matt frowned.

"You are, unless her witchy ass gets killed. Then the spell goes poof." Damon grinned. "Am I right?" he asked.

Bonnie glared at him before turning to Matt. "Damon's right. If anything happens to me, then the spell will stop working."

"You shouldn't be doing this Bonnie." Abby shook her head. "What you are trying to do is too dangerous. Your magic comes from the Earth. It's pure. This spell asks you to tap into dark places. Places of temptation, places you can't handle."

"You turned your back on me for sixteen years, you have no idea what I can handle." Bonnie looked at her mother in disdain.

"Gotta say I'm team Bonnie on this one." Damon added.

"Can we just get going?" Caroline sighed.

The Original siblings, plus Damon, Stefan, Laura, Caroline, Bonnie and Meredith all headed over to the school. Before they left, Bonnie had prepared for the spell to ensure everyone had a chance to get to him. When they arrived at the school, Bonnie started to give them instructions on what they had to do.

"This is the app to allow us to find each other." Bonnie told them as they all loaded it onto their phones. "I just got this. It connects us all through our phones." She explained.

"Digital locator spell. Why the hell do we need you then?" Damon smirked, earning him a reproachful look from Laura.

"Laura, I need you to stay with me." Bonnie said. "You're the least experienced fighter and I need someone with vampire speed just in case you guys can't take him out long enough to stop his heart. As soon as you find him, send a message and everyone can congregate in that area. I can cloak Laura and Meredith, then I'll snap Ric's neck and you hold onto him while I do the desiccation spell. Is everyone ready?" she asked, handing Stefan a large vial of blood. "Drink this. It's my blood. It bridges us all together so that when I stop Meredith's heart, you'll have the power to stop Alaric's. You need to make a physical connection to his bloodstream; a vein, artery, something connected to his heart."

"Look at this, one big, happy family." Klaus said sarcastically.

"If one of us gets a clean shot, take it, the other two: hold him down." Stefan said, ignoring Klaus's jibe, as he took a swig of the blood and passed it to Klaus.

"Before we all walk through these doors, let's get on the same page, shall we? I was the one who created your vampire bloodline, therefore I am responsible for your lives and Tyler's life, and of course, Abby's life, should anything go wrong." He warned as he took a sip of the blood and handed it to Damon.

"Yeah daddy Klaus, we know." Damon rolled his eyes, sipping the blood and handing it to Caroline.

"He's not lying." Laura said.

"Do you really think I'm going to let him die when I know he's your sire?" Damon asked Laura who suddenly went silent, not knowing how to respond to that statement.

"Let's just get this over with, shall we?" Stefan sighed as Caroline, Rebekah and Elijah all drank the rest of the blood.

The vampires headed off into the school, leaving Laura to wait around with Bonnie and Meredith. She was nervous that Ric would get the better of them, and she hated not being in control of the situation. As a teacher, she was used to controlling a classroom of students, now she was feeling helpless, and she hated it.

"How are you doing Laura?" Bonnie asked Laura with a look of concern.

"Peachy." Laura shook her head. "Look, as far as I'm concerned, this is a weird ass dream, and tomorrow I'll wake up in my bed just like normal." She said. "But as it's a vivid dream, and I've always wondered what it would be like living in Mystic Falls, I thought I'd play along with it while I'm here." She shrugged.

"And if you wake up in the morning and you're still here?" Bonnie asked.

"Then I'll cross that bridge when I get to it." Laura shrugged.

"What makes you think it's a dream?" Meredith frowned.

"You know what's happening?" Laura narrowed her eyes.

"As nobody is calling you Elena, I'm suspecting something isn't right." Meredith shrugged. "You think you're in a dream and everyone else knows you're not, but don't seem too concerned about it." She said.

"It's because she's a doppelganger." Bonnie told Meredith. "But Laura doesn't believe it yet. She did, until Esther wiped her memories when she did the spell to turn Ric." She explained.

"Okay." Meredith nodded.

"Are you fine with Bonnie doing the spell?" Laura asked the doctor.

"A little nervous." Meredith admitted.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine." Laura smiled at her. "In the show version, Bonnie did the spell on Jeremy, he lived." She assured her. "Except she desiccated Klaus instead. But I don't think he'll fall for it this time if they manage to take down Ric first." She shrugged. "And as long a Professor Shane doesn't arrive on the scene, he won't try to make me human, which means he won't be a pest."

"I thought you didn't buy into all of this?" Meredith asked.

"I'm in spoiler mode." Laura grinned as a noise came from Bonnie's phone, signaling a text.

"Caroline has found him." Bonnie told them. "He's in Ric's classroom, he's got Caroline." She said. "Laura, you need to take me to him." She said.

"I don't know where the classroom is." Laura said as Bonnie held out her phone to Laura.

"I the entrance, down the hallway, second exit on your right." She said. "I'll cloak all three of us, you just concentrate on getting to that point." She said. "But first, we need to hold hands."

"Fine." Laura nodded, as all three of them held hands.

"Invisique!" Bonnie said, although nothing seemed different.

"We good to go?" Laura asked.

"It's down to you." Bonnie told her as Laura concentrated hard on her destination. "And when we get there, be quiet." She added.

Laura pulled Bonnie and Meredith in tight and set off running in the direction Bonnie had told her. As soon as she got into the school, she suddenly knew exactly where to go, although she had no idea how. It wasn't Bonnie's directions, but she could feel a familiarity, which was impossible from the show as the direction to Ric's classroom was never defined.

When they arrived, instead of finding Caroline, they discovered Damon, Klaus and Rebekah, all fighting what appeared to be a losing battle with Ric. Moments after they got there, Stefan arrived. Damon was trying to wrestle the stake from Ric, but in the process, he got his neck snapped. Rebekah grabbed Ric from behind, however, he shook her off like a rag doll, sending her flying down the hallway. Just as Klaus and Stefan approached, Bonnie let go of Laura and concentrated on Ric, who momentarily stopped, and felt his neck, but clearly the neck snap hadn't worked.

"Stop cloaking us." Laura whispered. "It's draining you." She said as Bonnie looked at both Laura and Meredith before nodding.

Suddenly Ric looked around at Bonnie, Laura and Meredith.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as Bonnie held her hand out and twisted it. "Argh!" Ric cried as he fell to the floor.

"Klaus… Now!" Bonnie cried. "We only have a few seconds before he wakes up." She added as Klaus ran over to Ric's body.

"You're stronger than me." Stefan said to Klaus. "You hold him while I get his heart." He said as Klaus nodded.

Meredith lay down on the floor as Stefan stuck his hand into Ric's chest, making contact with his heart, which prompted Bonnie to begin to chant.

"Ocoros Mecante, Aleora Subsitos. Ocoros Mecante, Aleora Subsitos. Ocoros Mecante, Aleora Subsitos. Aleora Subsitos. Ocoros Mecante, Aleora Subsitos. Olo Santire, Dis Et Brav. Ocoros Mecante, Aleora Subsitos. Ocoros Mecante." Bonnie cried as Ric's eyes flew open, but it was too late, his skin began to turn grey and veins covered his body as the desiccation took over. Meanwhile Meredith stopped breathing, and Laura heard her heart stop beating.

Suddenly Laura noticed the black veins of dark magic flow through Bonnie's body, similar to the ones which had just desiccated Ric. The eventually reached her face and disappeared, all the while a breeze had whipped up in the hallway, which seemed to revive Damon.

"What the fu…" Damon started as everyone stared at Bonnie's appearance.

Bonnie glanced around once the wind died down and pressed her hands onto Meredith's chest and began to chant the revival spell.

"En Dugas, Tuas, Animos!" Bonnie repeatedly chanted, however Meredith failed to stir.

"She'll be fine." Laura assured them when suddenly Meredith took a deep breath and looked up at Bonnie.

"Did it work?" Meredith asked.

Bonnie sat back and breathes a huge sigh of relief. "It worked." She said.

"Where's Caroline?" Klaus asked, his face looking scared as they her a gurgled scream.

Stefan rushed into Ric's classroom, with Klaus, Laura and Damon following close by. Behind them, Elijah had just appeared, and he along with Meredith came to see what Ric had done to Caroline. Just as Laura expected, Caroline was sat at a desk, wooden pencils in her hands, nailing her to the desk. In her mouth was a vervain soaked rag.

"Meredith, you'll need to ungag her." Laura said. "Its covered in vervain." She warned as Klaus and Stefan practically fought to remove the pencils from Caroline's hands.

As soon as she was free, Klaus quickly took Caroline in his arms, much to the shocked looks around the room at such a display of affection from the evil hybrid.

"I've got you love." Klaus whispered gently to Caroline. "You're safe with me." He assured her as Damon looked to say something, but clearly thought the better of it.

"We need to remove the body." Elijah stated, trying to bring in some sense to the situation.

"The basement is prepped and ready for one beef-jerkified Original history teacher." Damon said as they left the classroom and he picked Ric's body up and slung it over his shoulder. Laura noticed him pocketing the white oak stake but decided not to say anything for the time being.

By the time they got outside, Caroline had recovered enough to be complaining to Klaus to put her down. Once he did, it was clear she was still weak, but not weak enough to be carried by Klaus.

"I'll take you home." Stefan offered.

"Thanks." Caroline smiled sadly at him.

"I'll see you back at the house." Stefan said as he led Caroline away and they got in her car, except Stefan was driving instead.

"Where's the stake?" Klaus asked, looking at Damon.

Damon sighed as he placed Ric in the trunk of his car. "Can't hide anything from you, can we?" he shook his head.

"Well, I think it is a wise idea to keep the stake as far away from the teacher as possible." Klaus smirked.

"I'm with my brother on this matter." Elijah said.

"Fine." Damon rolled his eyes. "It's no use to us anyway if we can't kill you." He said as he pulled the white oak stake out of his pocket and handed it to Elijah instead of Klaus.

"A wise decision, I'm sure you appreciate." Elijah smiled.

"Umm… we might need it later to kill Kol." Laura shrugged.

"Why would you want to kill my brother?" Klaus growled.

"Well, it all depends on whether we go with the entire releasing Silas project and all." Laura sighed. "I'd avoid it at all costs if I were you. But it would mean getting rid of some people and hope that we could get rid of a hunter pretty quickly as he's about to rage havoc on Mystic Falls." Laura shrugged.

"I'm already tracking Connor Jordan, if that is what you are alluding to." Elijah told her. "I believe it maybe an idea to take out Pastor Young to prevent him creating the first massacre." He said.

"What's going on?" Damon frowned.

"Can we go home?" Laura asked. "It's getting late and I'm tired, so, we can talk about it in the morning." She yawned. "Plus, I'm hungry." She added.

"Fine." Damon agreed.

"I'll explain when we return." Elijah told Klaus and Rebekah.

"I'm gonna head off home." Bonnie smiled, turning to Meredith. "You want a ride?" she asked as Meredith nodded.

"Tomorrow is a new day, with new problems." Laura said. "Goodnight everyone." She called out as she climbed into the passenger seat of Damon's car, and they set off back to the boarding house.


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura woke the next morning expecting to find herself in her own bed. Unfortunately, when she opened her eyes, she discovered she was still in the spare room she'd chosen to sleep in the previous night. Damon had kindly offered to let her stay in his room, but Laura had decided she wasn't ready for any idea of romance. Instead, she needed to learn how to feed and how to deal with the looming threat of Atticus Shane.

Now Laura had a bigger problem; she had to contemplate that maybe what she was being told might have some truth to it. She remembered going to bed with a huge headache. Bonnie had explained that Laura had had a magical aneurysm, except as it was on the Plane of Preparation, it had been forced, so that she could merge with Elena. Laura still didn't buy the doppelganger part, but the thought she might have had an aneurysm or stroke, wasn't beyond the realms of insanity. That meant she might be in a coma and could be there for a while. So, for the time being, she decided to play the part, until she woke up, as it would make her dream far more interesting.

After showering and getting dressed, Laura made her way to the kitchen for some coffee and blood. Even though she'd had a blood bag the night before, to restore the energy she'd used in carrying both Bonnie and Meredith, she was still tired from what she'd done. What surprised her the most, was that she also felt hungry in the normal human sense. She desperately craved some pancakes, which was fortunate, as when she walked into the kitchen, it was exactly what Damon was cooking.

"Coffee?" Damon asked.

"Sure." Laura nodded as Damon handed her a cup before she got to tell him how she liked it, however, Damon clearly already knew. "How did you know how I liked my coffee?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"According to Bonnie, you and Elena are the same person." Damon explained. "If that's right, then you'll like your coffee exactly the same way as Elena does." He shrugged. "Was I right?" he asked.

Laura frowned. "Yeah." She said. "And how did you know I like pancakes?" she asked.

"Same reason." Damon replied. "Oh, there's blood in the refrigerator. I figured you'd be hungry." He said.

"Thanks." Laura said as she went to the refrigerator and retrieved a couple of bags. When she returned to the kitchen table, there was a plate with a pancake on it, her coffee and a glass for her blood.

"Bon appetite." Damon grinned as he sat down to his own pancake, reminding Laura of the time Damon and Elena went back to the Prison World to find Bonnie.

As they were alone, Laura decided she needed to discuss a few matters with Damon, and now seemed like a good time to start.

"So, it appears I haven't returned to my body yet…" Laura started.

"So, it appears." Damon nodded as he took a bite of his pancake.

"Which means, I'm probably stuck in a coma for that time being…" she tried to continue, however, Damon interrupted her once more.

"Or this is real." He said.

"I guess it is a small possibility." Laura agreed. "But as far as I'm concerned, I'm stuck in a TV show. I don't see how that can be reality." She shrugged.

"Bonnie explained it pretty well yesterday." Damon nodded.

"But what if I don't believe it?" Laura asked.

Damon put down his fork. "Look, for the time being, I'm happy to play along with this strange notion of yours that you are living in some kind of TV dreamworld." He said. "If Bonnie is right, you will gradually begin to turn into Elena. Your memories of your life as Laura will disappear. I'm a patient guy." He smiled. "I waited a hundred and forty-five years for Katherine. What's a few weeks or months for you to get back to being yourself?" he asked.

"You're really certain that's going to happen?" Laura asked.

"I'm alive… ish." Damon nodded. "I'm not worried about who's right and wrong. You'll soon find out as you lose your memory." He said.

"How do you know it'll happen?" Laura asked.

"What happened to Ric in the show?" Damon frowned.

"He died." Laura shrugged.

"So, that means the future has changed." Damon explained. "Every little change means you lose your Laura memories. And as you mentioned something about Pastor Young and Elijah said he was tailing a hunter called Connor Jordan, I'm assuming that is also something that didn't happen in the show. Am I right?" he asked.

"That didn't happen." Laura agreed.

"And apparently you made sure you weren't sired to me by getting Klaus to turn you." Damon added.

"True…" Laura started.

"Good." Damon smiled.

"But I'm not sure if the sire-bond affected Elena's feelings for you." Laura told him hesitantly.

"They didn't." Damon sat back and sipped on his glass of blood. "I have faith that things will get back to the way they were, even if I really should be mad at you for not telling me. But you can't remember anything, so there's no point." He looked at Laura's half-eaten pancake. "I suggest you eat up, Elijah is on his way here, and we need to get out of here before Pastor Young starts to do his rounds." He said.

"Shit!" Laura said. "What are we going to do?" she asked.

"We're going to stop Pastor Young from taking out the council." Damon told her as he rolled her eyes.

"How?" Laura asked.

"All will be explained, as soon as you've finished breakfast." Damon told her, as Laura quickly ate up.

"I'm done!" Laura said, before drinking the blood down.

"And Elijah has just arrived." Damon smirked. "Let's go talk to him." He said, as they headed to the parlor.

"Good morning." Elijah smiled as Damon and Elena joined him in the parlor.

"Good morning." Damon nodded.

"Hi Elijah." Laura smiled.

"I have had my people working on tracking Connor Jordan." He told them.

"Who's Connor Jordan?" Damon asked.

"He's a supernatural vampire hunter." Laura told him.

"And not a person a vampire would want to kill." Elijah added.

"Why?" Damon frowned. "I'm willing."

"When you kill a hunter, they haunt your subconscious." Laura explained. "They aim to take at least one more life, so the killer is cursed until they kill themselves."

"And how do you get rid of it?" Damon asked.

"You either kill yourself or find another hunter." Laura told him. "Unless you can survive until another hunter triggers their curse, or skills, or whatever you want to call it."

"Just find another hunter." Damon shrugged.

"The problem is that there are only ever five hunters in existence at any one given time." Elijah explained.

"And most don't know why they are getting the urges, let alone what to do." Laura added. "It could be decades before another is found." She said, deliberately keeping the information about Jeremy to herself. She didn't know what she'd told Bonnie and Elijah, but Jeremy irritated Laura, so she was quite happy him not being around to annoy her.

"Exactly." Elijah agreed, suggesting he was either hiding the fact Jeremy was a hunter, or Laura hadn't told him.

"What about Pastor Young?" Laura asked. "He's going to be doing the rounds in a few minutes. He'll be coming after us and Ric." She said.

"Don't worry, last night after you went to bed, I took him from the basement and put him somewhere very safe." Damon smirked. "I've also got a plan, to get us out of here." He added as Stefan, Caroline, and Sheriff Forbes walked through the door.

"Have you seen Pastor Young yet?" Damon asked.

"Not yet." Liz shook her head. "But he's already paid a trip to the hospital and threatened to have Dr. Fell's medical license revoked." she told them.

"Are you all packed?" Damon asked.

"Yeah." Stefan nodded.

"Where are we going?" Laura asked.

"The Lake House." Damon told her. "You, me, Stefan and Caroline are all going up to Caroline's Lake House." he said.

"You're all invited to go in." Liz smiled. "Oh, and Damon, Caroline has the town supply of vervain in her car." She added.

"Liz Forbes, have I ever told you how much I love you." Damon grinned as Liz smiled and blushed.

"What are you going to do?" Laura asked. "They'll take your badge." She said.

"I'm coming with you of course." Liz grinned, as everyone looked at each other nervously. "Just kidding." She shook her head. "Don't worry. I'm going to my sister's house to get out of the way, and I'm taking Carol Lockwood." She told them.

"What about Tyler?" Caroline looked at everyone.

"He is going with Klaus." Elijah told them. "We have a retreat outside New Orleans." He said. "They will be safe there. I on the other hand will be joining you a little later."

"I've told the council not to meet with Pastor Young, and to get out of town." Liz told them. "I've said he's dangerous and delusional and possibly suicidal. I just hope they all listen." She sighed. "Look, I gotta go, I don't want people to get suspicious." She said, turning to Caroline. "Be safe." She told her daughter as she kissed her on the cheek.

"Goodbye mom." Caroline said sadly as Liz left.

"I should be leaving." Elijah told them. "We'll talk when we get to our locations." He said, and with that he also left.

"What about Bonnie?" Laura asked.

"She's recovering." Caroline told her. "She can't help right now."

"Well I guess I ought to pack." Laura frowned.

"Your clothes were in my closet." Damon reminded her. "So, I took the liberty of packing for you. Everything is already in the trunk of my car." He smiled. "We just need to get going."

Laura wanted to go with Caroline, however, Damon and Stefan insisted each of them travel with one brother as they were both stronger than Caroline and Laura due to their age. As show lore was fairly consistent regarding this aspect; apart from the time Caroline beat Damon up, Laura had to agree it was the most logical plan. Therefore, she got in Damon's car and they set off to Caroline's Lake House.

It took six hours for them to arrive at the Lake House. fortunately, they'd managed to outrun Pastor Young and all of his cronies, she just hoped the Originals had also gotten away safely in time. Damon had purposely stuck to the speed limit, to make sure they weren't stopped by police, which could have alerted Pastor Young to their destination. However, they'd still gotten there much quicker than Stefan and Caroline, who had taken a slightly different route, stopping of at a blood bank on their way there.

The Lake House had four bedrooms, much to Laura's relief. She didn't want to sleep in the same room as anyone else just yet as she was adjusting to Elena's body, and although Laura knew them from the show, realistically, these people were in some respects, strangers to her.

Laura unpacked her things in her room, before opting to take a bath. The dream was lasting too long for her liking, and she was starting to get a little concerned as to whether any of Bonnie's words could be true. As she immersed herself into the hot bubbles, she closed her eyes and tried to think about her home. Except she found she couldn't exactly picture what her rooms looked like. Every time she tried to conjure up an image, she came up with the interior of Elena Gilbert's house.

"Fuck!" she swore to herself, annoyed that she was starting to lose her memories.

Angrily, she got out of the bath, dried herself and put on some fluffy pajamas. As winter was approaching, and the Lake House wasn't exactly in a warm area of the country, she appreciated the warmth of the material. Just as she was brushing her hair, there was a knock on her bedroom door.

"Who is it?" Laura asked.

"It's me, Damon." Came Damon's voice from the other side of the door. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"Sure." Laura replied as Damon walked in with a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. He closed the door behind him and sat on the bed.

"What's wrong? You can't hide in here forever." he asked, pouring a drink and handing it to Laura, who decided now was a good time to attack some strong alcohol.

"Let me see." Laura sighed. "I've been ripped away from my life, I find out that I'm a vampire, I'm in mortal peril, again." She rolled her eyes. "I'm now confined to a house with three people who know me, but I only know them from a TV show. Maybe I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed and lonely at the same time." She shrugged. "And to make matters worse, the only person I seem to be able to connect with, is my least favorite character from said TV show." She threw the contents of her glass down her throat, which burned and caused her to cough and splutter.

"I'm your least favorite character?" Damon said sadly. "Ouch!" he sighed.

"Were." Laughed shook her head. "I don't know, I'm all confused. Which is making matters worse. And then, while I was in the tub, I tried to think about home, and I couldn't even remember what my kitchen looked like." She told him as tears began to well up in her eyes.

Damon moved over to her and tenderly put his arm around her shoulder, giving her some kind of comforting support.

"Are you missing your family?" he asked.

Laura nodded. "Yes." She swallowed. "My dad died last year, but I miss my mom and my dog called…" she stopped, trying to remember the name of her dog, but try as she might, her mind came up blank.

"I'm here if you need me." Damon put his hand on her leg, as Laura looked up into his eyes. All she could see was a look of love staring back at her, which seemed odd, because she didn't believe she was the same person he loved. Instead it was the same body, but she appreciated the gesture, and it was nice to feel loved.

"Thank you Damon." Laura smiled, however, she then frowned before looking him straight in the eyes. "I don't mean this the wrong way." She started. "But in the show, I wanted Stefan and Elena to be together." She told him. "Stefan was my favorite." She admitted.

"And you still feel the same?" Damon asked, trying to hide the hurt in his eyes.

"I don't know how I feel yet." Laura shrugged. "I'm too overwhelmed to know that right now. Relationships are the last thing I want to deal with. But I know I won't be able to put it off forever, especially if this world does turn out to be real." She sighed. "I… I…"

"If you choose Stefan, that doesn't mean we can't be friends." Damon smiled. "I will accept whatever is fated to happen between us." He swallowed. "And although you might not see it, I can tell you are the same person. So, I would expect you to eventually make the same choices. But I could be wrong. It doesn't stop me from being here for you." He said.

Laura nodded. "I know." She said.

"Don't you think you ought to try and get to know us all?" Damon asked. "We could play games in the living room. It might help." He suggested.

Laura frowned. "Did Caroline send you?" she asked as Damon suddenly laughed.

"You say you don't know us, but you suspect Blondie sent me." He shook his head. "No, but it is a very Caroline thing to do." He smiled. "You coming?" he asked, holding his hand out. Laura hesitated for a minute before taking it and following him to the living room, where Caroline and Stefan were sat with a collection of bottles of alcohol.

"Good, you're here." Caroline smiled. "We're playing I have never." She told her. "We need to know what you know about us, and you answer the questions as Laura. That way we can get to know each other." She grinned. "The idea is, we pick a card, we say I have never; then we read the card. If we have done what is on the card, we have to take a shot." She explained.

Laura rolled her eyes. "This is not going to end well." She shook her head. "Okay, fine." She agreed as she sat next to Stefan on the couch.

Laura took in the vast array of bottles of alcohol. There was whiskey, vodka, gin, rum, tequila, four bottles of wine and twelve bottles of beer.

"You think we'll get through that?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

"Pft! I could get through that in an afternoon and still be standing." Damon grinned.

"I've got an extra two bottles of vodka and four bottles of bourbon, just in case we run out." Caroline shrugged.

"I'm so going to regret this." Laura shook her head.

"Vampires don't get hangovers." Damon told her. "We also require a lot of alcohol to get drunk." He added.

"I'll take your word for it." Laura sighed. "Who's first?" she asked.

"I will!" Caroline held her hand up and picked up a card. "I have never slept with a Salvatore." She said. "Hmm, unfortunately I have." She shuddered as she drank her drink down. "Laura, what about you?" she asked.

"I can't remember sleeping with anyone called Salvatore." Laura said. "But apparently I did." She admitted, drinking her shot of vodka straight down. Oddly, it didn't have quite as much effect as she expected. She felt more like she'd had a sip of low alcohol beer. "Now I get why you guys can drink so much." She said, as the other three laughed.

"Don't worry, we've got enough to get a slight buzz." Stefan told her.

"Speak for yourself brother." Damon laughed.

"Who's next?" Caroline asked.

"I'll go." Stefan offered as he picked out a card. The moment he read it he shook his head in disbelief. "Caroline; is this a sex version?" he asked.

"Apparently, according to Bonnie, Laura's version of our world is through a teen show." Caroline explained. "I thought maybe we should try the adult version." She grinned.

"Disclaimer!" Laura held up her hand. "If I've done anything kinky with either of you two, I can't remember it so I can't own up to it." She announced.

"Just let us know Laura's life." Caroline said, turning to Stefan. "What does it say?" she asked.

"I have never had a threesome." Stefan shook his head as he poured out some tequila in his glass and drank it. Damon took the bottle from him and did the same. Laura took a deep breath and filled her own glass up and downed it, much to the shock of the other three in the room.

"What, I'm forty, I had a wild time at college." She smirked as the others still looked shocked. "And you thought I was like Elena?" she laughed.

"Actually, if Elena's parents hadn't died, I wouldn't have been surprised if she'd gone wild at college." Caroline admitted.

"We are talking about the same Elena Gilbert." Stefan frowned.

"No." Caroline shook her head. "Elena was very different to the person you met." She said.

"I can imagine." Laura told them. "There is a wild streak in Elena. I could see her getting high and letting go." She frowned, remembering the time Damon and Elena went to Whitmore college. "She doesn't let many people see that side of her. Only those who don't judge her and let her be who she really wants to be…" she tailed off as she looked at Damon and suddenly realized why Elena couldn't be with Stefan. He must have made her feel stifled, while Damon allowed her to be free. Although she suspected a threesome would be out of the question, even for Damon.

Laura got up. "I need some air." She said, as she went to stand outside.

Moments later, she heard footsteps behind her. Laura turned and was surprised to see Stefan.

"We haven't really had a chance to talk." Stefan said awkwardly.

"I always thought you and Elena should be together." Laura told him. "But its not my business."

"It is your business." Stefan disagreed. "But do you still think that? You've been Elena for forty-eight hours. Okay, you were her before that, but, um.. I mean, since Esther did what she did."

Laura looked at Stefan, she felt a warm feeling in her stomach, it was the feeling of love she had when she saw she loved dearly, yet something was missing. Laura tenderly pressed her hand against Stefan's cheek.

"I can feel Elena's emotions." Laura told him. "And I know she loves you dearly." She said.

"But I need to know Laura." Stefan pleaded. "I need to know where I stand. Am I competing with my brother's affections?" he asked as Laura looked at him in shock.

"I'm not sure if this is the right conversation to be having." Laura frowned.

"You know me." Stefan insisted. "You said it yourself you prefer Elena with me. And you are Elena. You can make that right." He smiled sweetly.

"Look Stefan, I need time." Laura sighed. "I need to learn how to feed…" she started.

"I'll take you out into the woods tomorrow." Stefan interrupted, his eyes lighting up. "I can show you how to hunt. You don't need to feed from humans." He said excitedly.

"And why would I want to feed on animals?" Laura asked.

"Because you don't have to hurt or kill humans." Stefan smiled. "It's much better."

"But I can just use blood bags." Laura frowned. "I want to be able to know how to resist the urge." She said.

"If you only feed from animals, you'll forget what human blood tastes like and you'll be able to resist. Its easier and better." Stefan said enthusiastically.

"I'd like to try all of the options first before I make my mind up, even though I'm pretty much decided on blood bags." Laura told him.

"Is that because of Damon?" Stefan spat. "Has he already been telling you what to do?"

"No." Laura shook her head.

"Well, it sounds like it." Stefan said angrily.

"I want to make sure I can hunt without killing." Laura insisted.

"And what if you're a ripper?" Stefan folded his arms. "You'll kill someone, and it will destroy you. You'll flip the switch because you can't cope with the guilt. I know, I've been there." He told her softly.

"Elena isn't a ripper." Laura frowned.

"You keep saying it yourself, you're not Elena." Stefan argued back.

"If you don't think I'm Elena, then why do you even care?" Laura raised her voice, not knowing why Stefan was making her so angry. "Is it because I look like Katherine?" she spat.

Stefan looked at her completely shocked by her comment, however, suddenly, Laura felt a wave of dizziness come over her and she stumbled. Stefan caught her and helped her sit.

"You okay?" he asked gently.

"Yeah, I don't know what came over me." She shook her head.

"Maybe you need to feed." Stefan suggested.

Laura nodded. "Maybe." She agreed as Caroline suddenly appeared, Damon following her.

"Pastor Young has been shot, he's seriously wounded in hospital, but still alive. The council are alive." Caroline cried happily.

"That means Professor Shane is going to need someone…" Laura felt dizzy again.

"What's wrong?" Damon asked as he rushed to Laura's side.

"I'm not sure." Laura shook her head.

"Events are changing." Damon said. "You're memories are fading as they do. Bonnie said this would happen." He shook his head. "I wonder if the significance of the change affects how much you react to it." He frowned.

"Maybe." Laura nodded.

"Caroline, bring Laura a blood bag." Damon instructed as Caroline rushed into the house.

Laura looked up at Damon gratefully; as she did, she got that same warm feeling she had with Stefan; she knew Elena loved Damon dearly, however, there was another sensation she felt, something that didn't happen with Stefan. Damon gave Laura butterflies in her stomach.

"Thank you." Laura said to Damon as Caroline appeared with the blood bag.

"What is your job?" Damon asked.

"I'm a teacher." Laura frowned, not understanding the question.

"What do you teach?" Damon narrowed his eyes.

"I teach…" Laura stopped. "I… I can't remember." She whispered. "Oh my god. This is real." She looked at Damon, Stefan and Caroline and burst into tears.


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

The four of them headed back into the house, slightly deflated from Laura's sudden memory loss. However, it did confirm the changes which were occurring, although it was uncertain as to whether these were changes for the better. Therefore, Laura decided to explain what had happened.

"I don't think the I have never game is going to work now." Laura told them. "But I'm going to explain why Pastor Young being hospitalized is so significant." She said.

"Will we need alcohol?" Damon asked.

"Copious amounts." Laura smiled.

"At least that's a good thing." Caroline grinned as Stefan just sat back, not saying anything, while everyone grabbed a drink.

"What is all of this about?" Damon asked. "All we know is that Pastor Young can't be allowed to blow up the council." He frowned. "Not that I have a problem with that." He shrugged.

"There's a guy called Professor Shane who teaches at Whitmore college." Laura told them. "He's been brain-washing Pastor Young to blow up the council."

"Why?" Caroline asked.

"Because he wants to raise an immortal called Silas." Laura explained. "He's not a vampire, but he's the first immortal being. He was a witch and some spell was cast. He's entombed on an island off Nova Scotia." She told them. "When Elena turned, she was sired to Damon, and at the time, they thought the only way to break the sire-bond was to team up with Professor Shane and go to Silas." She said.

"I'm guessing there was something Silas could do about the sire-bond." Damon frowned.

"Not exactly." Laura shook her head. "You see, Silas is buried with a cure for vampirism." She told them.

Damon, Stefan and Caroline looked at her in shock.

"So why don't we go get it?" Stefan asked.

"Because you don't want to wake Silas." Laura shook her head. "He's evil."

"So why is this Professor Shady looking for a cure?" Damon asked.

"He doesn't want the cure." Laura shook her head. "Silas has convinced the professor that he will raise his dead wife and kid. Which is why the massacre had to be stopped." She said.

"What's the massacre got to do with anything?" Stefan frowned.

"Pastor Young took out eleven other people." Laura explained. "There needed to be twelve deaths for the magic to work." She said, looking straight at Damon. "Does this sound familiar to you?" she asked.

"Are you talking about Charlotte?" Damon asked as Laura nodded.

"The spell was a fake." Laura told him. "Charlotte is still sired to you. She's just counting every brick in New Orleans." She stifled a laugh. "There's only one way to break a sire-bond. The vampire who is sired to you needs to flip the switch." She said. "It breaks the emotional connection. You never needed to kill those people. Valerie wanted you to do it to fuel her magic. You see, it's a type of magic called Expression, and it is even worse than dark magic." She said.

Fuck!" Damon swore. "That's a lot to take in." he shook his head.

"You killed twelve people to break a sire-bond?" Stefan said to Damon in disgust, before turning to Laura. "You knew this, yet you let him get close to you. How could you?" his face looked at her in disgust.

"I think you should be the last person to judge!" Laura stood up. "I don't want to hear your moral high ground. You're a fucking vampire, be a fucking vampire!" she cried before storming off to her room.

Laura had enough of Stefan for the night. Even when trying to explain the seriousness of the situation, he wanted to make Damon look bad. Except this time, he was making her look bad and she just didn't want to be around him to listen to that. She was having a hard-enough time trying to adapt as it was. There was a knock on her bedroom door.

"Who is it?" Laura called out, hoping it wasn't Stefan.

"It's me." Damon called out. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"Yeah." Laura sighed although she just wanted to be alone.

Damon walked in and closed the door behind him, he carried what looked like a book in his arm, before handing it to her.

"What's this?" Laura asked.

"It's an empty journal." Damon told her. "I'm guessing it won't be long before you forget more and more, so I figured you might want to write everything down. When you've fully merged with Elena, you might not want to know what it say, but on the other hand, you might be intrigued." He shrugged. "I just thought you might want it just in case." He said.

It was such a wonderful gesture, it almost brought tears to Laura's eyes.

"Thank you Damon." She swallowed, taking the empty journal from him. "I will write down the things I want to remember." She said. "I just wish I hadn't forgotten things already." She frowned.

"Well, I've got an idea for that too." Damon smiled as Laura looked at him quizzically. "You know I can give people dreams, right?" he asked.

"Yes." Laura nodded.

"Well, I asked Bonnie if it was possible to give you any magic which would temporarily give you your memories back, every now and again." He said. "She told me it could only be done once. But, if Bonnie does the spell and I go into your head at the same time, I can get those images for you. Then I can put them back in there whenever you want me to. If you want to remember your dog, I can show her to you." He suggested.

"You can do that?" Laura asked.

"I wouldn't pry into anything you didn't want me to see." Damon promised. "You just open up as far as you want me to go, and I can get your memories pretty quickly." He suggested. "But I'm the only one who can do it." He shrugged. "It takes a lot of practice. Caroline isn't strong enough yet, and Stefan has spent too much time on the bunny diet to be capable of anything this powerful. Would you trust me to do it?" he asked.

"I trust you." Laura nodded. "And yes, I'd like that very much." She smiled gratefully.

"Bonnie is going to Whitmore college tomorrow to meet Professor Shadypants. Apparently he has some of her Grams stuff." Damon told her. "So, I thought we can do the spell and then I could teach you to feed." He suggested.

Laura grinned. "I'd like that." She agreed.

"Great." Damon nodded. "Well I'll let you get some rest. And I'll see you tomorrow for Whitmore." He said as he left.

"Goodnight Damon." Laura smiled as he closed the door behind him. After he'd gone, Laura held the journal close to her chest, this gift of her memories was probably the greatest gift anyone could give her, and he'd been the one to suggest it. _No wonder Elena fell in love with him._ Laura mused.

The next day, they met Bonnie outside the main campus at Whitmore college. Laura had been looking forward to seeing Bonnie to find out what she could do to help her retain her memories via Damon. Laura had been expecting some kind of spell, but to her surprise, Bonnie simply handed over a jar of herbs.

"What do these do?" Laura asked.

"They're spelled herbs." Bonnie told her. "Mix them with water, then drink it. Take a bath as it will help soothe you. By this time, you'll be feeling drowsy. When you fall asleep, Damon simply has to dive into your mind and retrieve your memories. But it will take all night." She warned.

"I'm fine with that." Damon shrugged.

"You sure you don't mind spending the night watching me?" Laura frowned.

"I can't think of anything better to do." Damon grinned. "Well, I can, but you're not ready for that yet." He smirked as Laura rolled her eyes.

Laura turned to Bonnie. "Are you sure that you're okay with this?" she asked.

"Professor Shane wanted to see me. And I think it might be a good idea for you to keep your memories. So yeah, of course I'm happy to be here. Although I'll be going once I've seen the Professor and we've talked about what he was up to." Bonnie replied. "Plus, I wanted to check the place out for myself. Its where I want to study." She smiled.

"I can't imagine having to go to college again." Laura sighed.

"Oh, stop with the pity party. If I can go to college multiple times, so can you." Damon shook his head.

"You went to college?" Bonnie snickered.

"Sure, plenty of times. I always had a thing for sorority girls." Damon smirked.

"You're disgusting!" Bonnie looked at him in dismay.

"I know." Damon whispered proudly as they made their way to the class with Professor Shane. Before they walked in, Damon turned to Bonnie. "So, you know what you've got to do?" he asked.

"I'm to pretend I don't use magic anymore. That I did a spell and there were consequences." Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Please tell me your not going to kill him." She sighed.

"I'm still undecided." Damon frowned as Laura looked at him. "Okay, we'll have to find another way. Maybe I could turn him." He suggested.

"And how would that help?" Bonnie asked.

"Because the guy he is working with is a vampire hunter, which means he'd kill him instead." Damon grinned.

"Has Elijah confirmed where he is?" Laura whispered as they slipped into the classroom.

"When I spoke to him this morning, he told me the Connor Jordan guy was in Seattle." Damon replied so quietly, only Laura's vampire hearing would be able to pick it up. "We're safe here for the time being." He assured her.

"Good, because Professor Shane will know who we are, and the minute he suspects us, Connor Jordan will be heading straight to Mystic Falls." Laura said.

"Well, he's going to be a very disappointed vampire hunter, isn't he." Damon smirked as Bonnie gave him a dirty look before they all found a seat at the back and turned their attention to the Professor's class.

"When I say the word "witch", what pops into your head?" Professor Shane asked. "Halloween costume? Villain of a fairy tale? Maybe an ex-girlfriend? Well, whatever image it is it's probably not Tanyell Soso of Montego, Cameroon." He said as an image of a woman appeared on the screen.

"That's him." Laura pointed out.

"Yeah." Bonnie nodded.

"He's kind of..." Laura started.

"Hot." Bonnie whispered.

"Well, I was going to say weird." Laura smirked as Damon stifled his laughter, as Laura tried to listen.

"Now, in reality, or in this reality at least, witches appear to cross every culture in history. They're the architects of the supernatural; responsible for everything that goes bump in the night from ghosts to vampires to doppelgängers." Professor Shane continued in his lecture.

"What is this guy, Witch-apedia?" Damon whispered as Laura laughed, despite knowing Damon what Damon would say in advance.

"Shhh, shut up." Bonnie looked at Damon angrily.

"Now, if you're a skeptic, you'd call that a coincidence. But, if you're a true believer, you know that there's really no such thing. It scares the crap out of us." Professor Shane joked.

"So, who's on the menu for lunch?" Laura asked as Damon tried even harder not to laugh at her bold and unexpected statement.

"It's up to you, why don't you pick someone." Damon suggested.

Laura looked at him and he raised his eyebrows, allowing her to make the first move. Therefore, Laura started to look at the other people in the classroom. Her gaze fell on a guy who was fiddling with his pencil.

Damon clearly noticed who she was focusing on and decided to help her. "Stoner guys are no good to grab. They're too paranoid and you don't want the extra buzz." He told her as they looked further down the row.

"Now, she is a fun size." Damon pointed to a dark-haired girl wearing glasses. "A tutor. Geeky girls are inherently suspicious of anyone who is nice to them. What you want…" He placed his arm around her shoulder and pointed at a girl. "…is the little blonde, pretty girl. Self-absorbed, easily flattered, you just have to separate her from the pack and make your move." He whispered.

"Am I interrupting you guys?" Professor Shane called out to Damon and Laura who sat back awkwardly, pretending to be interested in the lecture. "Or is it maybe the other way around?" Professor Shane asked.

"Sorry." Laura apologized.

"I was just saying how much I love witches." Damon grinned.

"Yeah, you and me both, brother." Professor Shane said, before turning back to the class. "Alright, listen, we should probably talk about the readings that none of you did." He said.

They listened to the rest of the class, not learning much about Professor Shane. Although Laura already knew plenty, she felt he must be up to something, which was why he'd asked for Bonnie to come and see him. Just because he hadn't been able to blow up the council, didn't mean he wasn't still planning to raise Silas. The simple fact he wanted Bonnie was enough to tell her he had a backup plan. What did worry Laura was they had no idea what he was doing as he was clearly operating in another area. On top of that, Connor Jordan being in Seattle, meant he was killing vampires elsewhere, because he knew the vampires of Mystic Falls had disappeared.

Once they were outside, Laura had to put this out of her mind. She knew what she had to do, and she was going to succeed where Elena had failed. Laura didn't want to go to a Frat party. She was too old for that shit, instead she needed to feed on the girl and then they could go home, and Laura could take the herbs, have a bath and let Damon discover her memories.

Bonnie left to go to speak to Professor Shane, while Laura and Damon followed the young blonde girl from Professor Shane's class across campus. Laura noted they were stalking her like lions creeping up on their prey.

"She's young and healthy; she'll heal up like a charm. Just keep your eye on the ball. Okay?" Damon said quietly.

"It's not a game, Damon." Laura rolled her eyes. "I know that she'll be fine, I'm not a ripper." She said.

"Fine, it's not a game. It's a high stakes dangerous maneuver. Now, just go, just like we practiced. That's all you have to do." Damon told her as Laura walked over to the girl, leaving Damon stood watching her.

"Hey!" Laura called out after the girl from behind. The girl turned around to see who was talking to her. "You're in my Anthro class, right?" Laura smiled.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so." The girl frowned.

"I totally spaced out and forgot to get the reading list. Do you have it?" Laura asked, remembering this was the excuse Elena had used in the show.

"Sure. Uh – let me check." The girl smiled as she looked at her phone. Laura grabbed the girl's wrist and began to compel her.

"This isn't going to hurt. Please don't scream." She told her as Laura looked down at the girl's phone and saw a picture of her with a younger girl. As soon as she did, her stomach dropped, as hungry as she was, she couldn't hurt this girl. It felt, wrong.

"Who's that?" Laura asked, deciding to sound polite.

"It's my little sister." The girl told her.

Laura knew she would have another chance later that night. The Frat party suddenly seemed like a great idea after all. "Get out of here. Go back to class." She told the girl who turned around and walked off.

Laura felt disappointed in herself, she thought she could do better than Elena, but clearly she couldn't. she heard Damon sigh with frustration as he approached her.

"What the hell are you doing?" Damon demanded.

"I just...I saw the picture and I…" Laura shook her head in embarrassment.

"Everybody is someone's uncle or father or camp counselor or bible study teacher. Laura, you don't know these people, why do you care?" Damon asked. "Did the same thing happen to Elena?" he asked.

Laura nodded. "I thought I'd be able to do it because I'm me, not Elena. I was wrong, I must have the same feelings as her, Damon. Sorry I got it wrong." She said sadly as Bonnie walked up to them.

"What's going on?" Bonnie asked.

"Nothing. Laura is educating me on the importance of feelings and trying to pretend she's not Elena." Damon told her. "Elena couldn't hunt, but Laura thought she could do what Elena couldn't, but because she is Elena, she couldn't do it either." He shook his head in disbelief.

Bonnie sighed. "Laura, you are Elena. If Elena couldn't handle something on an emotional level, you'll have exactly the same problem." She said.

"At least I tried." Laura shrugged.

"And failed." Damon piped up.

"Shut up!" Laura snapped at Damon before deciding to change the subject and turning to Bonnie. "Did you talk to Professor Shane?" she asked.

"For a second. He found some stuff of my Grams' in his office and he's gonna dig it up for me. Oh, uh, this." Bonnie handed Laura a flyer for the fraternity murder house party later that day.

"Oh, nice, the answer to all of our problems. A frat party: douche central." Damon grinned and rubbed his hands together. "Which is why, you'll be eating very well tonight." He smirked as Bonnie looked at him in disgust. "So, what should we go as? Victims or killers?" he asked.

"Well I'm not going." Bonnie told them.

"What?" Laura asked. "When are you going to see Professor Shane?"

"In a few minutes." Bonnie replied. "He suggested we meet at the party, but I told him I didn't want to be driving home on my own that late at night." She shrugged. "But I thought you might find it useful." She smiled at Laura.

"Did you already know about this?" Laura eyed Bonnie suspiciously. "Did I tell you before?"

"Might have." Bonnie said innocently. "Look, you guys go get your costumes, I'll meet you back here in a couple of hours." She said. "I'll let you know if he wants to teach me magic." She said. "If he has, then we must assume he's already performed a massacre, or one is imminent."

"Don't forget to put your magic away in your mascara wand." Laura told her.

"It's already there." Bonnie smiled.

"Good luck." Laura said as she hugged Bonnie before they parted ways.

"You ready to go to the ball Cinderella?" Damon asked.

"Don't even think about calling yourself Prince Charming." Laura pointed her finger at Damon, who simply smirked. "Let's get our costumes." She said.

Two hours later, they arrived at the same spot with their costumes in the back seat of Damon's car. Bonnie was waiting for them on the bench near to the tree where they'd parted company. Laura was intrigued to know about Bonnie's conversation with the Professor, as it would give them some indication of what he was doing and where he was with his plan to raise Silas.

"What did he say?" Laura asked as soon as she saw Bonnie.

Bonnie took a deep breath. "He asked if I still practiced, and I told him no, just like you said. I gave him the same spiel you told me to." She explained. "He offered to teach me an alternative way of practicing." She said.

"Shit." Laura shook her head. "He must have found another way to do the massacre." She said.

"He has." Bonnie said sadly. "Have you guys checked your phones today?" she asked.

"No." Damon frowned as he took his from his back pocket. Laura noticed there were over a dozen missed calls. "Liz, Stefan, Caroline, Carol Lockwood." He frowned. "Elijah even." He added.

"Caroline managed to get hold of me before I saw Professor Shane." Bonnie told them. "Pastor Young's gunshot wound wasn't severe. He was sent home the same day. This morning, he held a council meeting and…" she stopped.

"Pooff!" Damon shook his head. "They all went up in a plume of smoke." He said dramatically, as Bonnie nodded.

"That means Connor is probably either on his way to Mystic Falls." Laura said. "Or to here." Her eyes widened with fear.

"I'll call Elijah." Damon said as he walked off to talk to Elijah alone.

"Do you think it's a good idea I go to the party with Damon on my own?" Laura whispered. "It's not what happened in the show." She said.

"I know." Bonnie said. "But the longer you push Damon away, the more your memories will disappear. If you guys end up in the same place as you did in the show, you can keep your memories for longer." She suggested. "But it has to be real, your feelings need to come from the heart, which is why you guys need some alone-time together, to have fun without the interruptions of me, Caroline or Stefan." She said.

"But you hate Damon, so why are you playing cupid?" Laura frowned.

Because he loves you, and he's a lot more tolerable with you." Bonnie told her. "It is completely self-serving." She smirked. "Plus, I get the impression you guys are fated to be together, so I'm just lending a helping hand." She shrugged.

"I'm still not sold on this." Laura shook her head.

"Just wait and see what happens tonight." Bonnie suggested as Damon returned.

"What did Elijah have to say?" Laura asked.

"Connor is still in Seattle." Damon told them. "But he's at the airport." He said. "If he was boarding the plane now, the shortest flight to get here would be a little under seven hours. Then he'd need to drive from the airport, which is at least an hour from here. So as long as we're out of here by 3am, we should be fine." He shrugged.

"Well, I need to get going." Bonnie said. "It'll be getting dark soon."

"I'll let you know tomorrow how everything went." Laura smiled at her and gave her a hug.

"Have fun guys." Bonnie said as she turned around and headed towards her car.

"Thanks Sabrina, I owe you one." Damon grinned as Laura looked at him confused. "Let's get ready for the party." He said as they headed back to the car to get their costumes.


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Damon and Laura retrieved their costumes from Damon's car and compelled some students to let them use their dorm to get changed. They also managed to find the location of Professor Shane's office as Laura had decided it might prove useful to have a snoop around his office while he was out. Not only was did she want to find out about his revised plans for Silas, but she wanted to see what information he had on doppelgangers and f he had any links with witches who might be able to help Ric.

There was another pressing issue Laura hadn't fully addressed, and she was surprised Damon hadn't mentioned it, and that was Enzo. Laura knew he was close to Whitmore house, but there was no way they were going to get in as Aaron's aunt was still alive, which was a conversation Laura knew she would have to address.

"What are we going to do about Enzo?" Laura asked while putting her mascara on.

"We'll come up with a plan." Damon replied, as he sat waiting for her, already in his outfit. "We need to get rid of this vampire hunter first. Elijah text me not long ago and the witches have told him that Connor is moving quickly across the US, which means he must be on a plane somewhere." He told her.

"We've still got plenty of time." Laura insisted. "But you are planning on rescuing him aren't you?" she asked.

"Yeah, I am." Damon nodded.

"Make sure Stefan helps you." Laura insisted. "Enzo held a grudge against Stefan, and it didn't end well for Enzo." She warned him.

"Maybe he's safer where he is." Damon frowned.

"Not with that sadistic doctor he's not." Laura shook his head. "And can you stop killing the Whitmore family?" she asked. "I get you and Enzo had a revenge plan cooked up, but if you start killing all of the family members of the doctors involved, you might as well start with Elena and Jeremy." She raised an eyebrow.

"What?!" Damon's eyes widened.

"Yeah, you heard right. Grayson Gilbert was one of the doctors who carried out experiments on Enzo. Which means he has just as much right to kill me as you have killing the Whitmore family." She turned to face him and folded her arms. "I know you have plans to kill them this summer and leave Aaron to survive. I've already written it down in my journal, so if you want to keep in Elena's good graces, I suggest you leave them alone." She turned and began to apply her lipstick.

"Enzo would never forgive me." Damon told her.

"He's never forgive you if he found out you knew he was alive and didn't try to rescue him." Laura said. "If you get him out of there, then I think he'll forgive you. Compel the Whitmore's to release Enzo and remove the funding for the program and forget that the experiments ever happened." She said.

"And how do you propose we rescue Enzo?" Damon asked.

"I only watched the show." Laura shrugged. "Circumstances are different. You're the one who usually comes up with the plans." She admitted as Damon's reflection appeared in the mirror behind her, watching her apply the finishing touches to her hair, and cause her stomach to lurch.

"Are they usually good plans?" he asked with a slightly seductive tone in his voice, which seemed to affect Laura a little bit too much.

Laura turned to face him. "Sometimes yes, and sometimes no." she said. "The feeding lesson is one of your better ones." She smiled. "However, I think we ought to find out what Professor Shane is up to first." She said. "Let's get rid of Connor before we free Enzo. For the time being, he's safer where he is." She told him.

"Do you want to go before the party of after?" Damon asked.

"Before." Laura said. "We don't know what time Connor will get here, that's if he is coming to Whitmore. He might be heading towards Mystic Falls."

"According to Elijah's last text, which was ten minutes ago, he was flying over Montana." Damon told her. "So, wherever he is going, I think we've got a good few hours left." He assured her.

Laura nodded before turning to check herself on last time in the mirror. She was ready and looked identical to how Elena looked for the party at the frat house.

"You ready?" Laura asked.

"I've been ready for half an hour." Damon sighed.

"Let's go and break into Professor Shane's office." She smirked as they left the dorm.

Not long after, they arrived at the office of Professor Shane. However, instead of finding it empty, there was a light on, and Laura could hear his voice talking on the phone.

"I thought you said he'd be out." Damon mouthed to her.

Laura shrugged, not knowing why the Professor was still in his office. However, she could hear him talking and decided it might be worth their while listening in to the conversation. Laura pointed to her ear and motioned to the door to signal what she was doing. Damon nodded and frowned, suggesting he was also listening in.

"I'll have a car waiting." Professor Shane said, before going silent, clearly listening to the reply. "The place is usually swarming, but my sources say they've gone. Don't worry, I'll be able to lure them back." He said. He waited a minute or so before speaking again. "I'm heading to a party in a few minutes. I'll be back by the time you're here." He said as the room went silent again.

Suddenly Damon grabbed Laura by the arms and vamp-sped her along the hallway and up against the wall. He rested his forehead against hers and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in towards him.

"What are you doing?" Laura whispered.

"Pretending to be making out with you." Damon glared at her. "Professor Shadypants had finished his call and is on his way to the ball." He said. "Can you at least pretend?" he asked as Laura nodded. "You can watch him." He instructed.

Laura heard the Professor Shane's door open and decided to play along. She wrapped her arms around Damon's neck and began to kiss him. That way, Laura believed, it would be easy to keep and eye out on what Shane was doing and whether he was going straight to the party. If he was, then they could break into his office. That was the intention.

Reality didn't quite match Laura's intentions, as although Damon didn't initially kiss her back, clearly shocked by her boldness; when he did, he took her by even more surprise than she could have ever imagined. The kiss started out tenderly, as they were meant to be pretending to make out, however, it appeared they both were taking issue with the idea of 'pretending'.

Laura parted her lips, inviting Damon to deepen the kiss, to which he happily obliged. The term being swept of her feet came to mind as she tried to listen out for Professor Shane, but her mind went blank as she was all consumed by Damon and the kiss. Their tongues danced, as if they were fanning the flames in a fire with the heat emanating between them. Laura pulled Damon closer to her, as he pressed her further up against the wall. Laura could feel him hardening against her, which seemed to fuel her desire for him. She also noticed a strange tingling sensation around her eyes, as she realized her veins were showing. Just as suddenly as it started, Damon pulled away and looker over his right-hand shoulder, Laura quickly took deep breaths like Stefan had taught Caroline, to try and take the tingling sensation away, as she didn't want Damon to see it.

"He's gone." Damon told her, leaving her still in shock at what had just happened. "You wanna go snoop?" he asked with a completely straight face, as if nothing had happened. Unable to utter a coherent sentence, Laura simply nodded as they headed back towards Professor Shane's office.

Damon picked the lock of the door with what looked like a paper clip and opened the door.

"How did you know how to do that?" Laura asked. "I thought you usually just broke the locks."

"There are times and places where being sneaky is essential." Damon told her. "I am an expert in sneaky and snooping." He shrugged as he walked over to the desk and began to sift through Professor Shane's drawers. A few moments later, he pulled out a jar and shook it. "Ooh, look what I found." He grinned.

"What is it?" Laura asked innocently, even though she knew exactly what it was.

Damon opened the jar and sniffed. "Weed. Hmm, good stuff too." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Want some?" he asked as Laura shook her head.

"I'm learning how to feed remember?" She reminded him. "But it doesn't mean I won't have any later on." She smirked.

"I'll confiscate these." Damon nodded, putting the jar in his pocket.

Laura began to look at the list of books on the shelf, when one called _Doppelgangers, Their Souls and Their Origins._ Laura pulled the book off the shelf and began to quickly flick through the pages. She came to a section which was extremely interesting, it was relating to the souls of doppelgangers and why they were separated. However, as they were in a rush, Laura decided it would be easier to take the book with them.

"Look at this." Damon called.

Laura rushed over to see what he was looking at. It was a list of addresses in Mystic Falls, plus the addresses of Caroline's and the Gilbert's lake houses. Laura looked up at Damon in horror as she realized they might be found. There was no New Orleans address for the Originals, which meant Professor Shane didn't know where they were. Laura also noted the name Hayley Marshall, the mother of Klaus's daughter, Hope. Damon took his phone out and began to photograph the contents so they could have a better look later.

Suddenly Laura looked up as she heard footsteps outside. Damon must have heard them too as he quickly turned the lights off and pushed her towards the window. He opened it and motioned for Laura to jump out of it. Laura looked out of the window and saw they were two stories high and under normal circumstances, she'd at least break a bone, if not possibly end up dead. Seeing her hesitation, Damon rolled his eyes and scooped her up by the waist. The next thing she knew was she was on the ground outside the building, just in time as the light was switched on. Damon grabbed hold of Laura's hand and they vamp-sped away, until they got back to Damon's car.

Damon put the jar of herbs in the glovebox of his car when he noticed the book Laura was carrying.

"What's that?" he asked.

"It's a book on the history of doppelgangers." Laura frowned. "Both Silas and Amara were doppelgangers, they are the original owners of my face and Stefan's face. I thought there might be more information in there which could be useful." She shrugged.

"Someone else was born with the same face as Stefan?" Damon wince. "Poor guy." He shuddered.

"He's the crazy immortal witch who wants to raise all of the dead people and has the…" Laura put her hand to her face as she remembered that the cure could help Ric.

"What?" Damon frowned.

"Umm, nothing." Laura shook her head. "Let's go to the party." She said, throwing the book in the back of the car and straightening her dress.

Damon looked at her skeptically for a moment, before locking the car and shrugging.

"Let's go." He agreed as they set off to the murder party.

When Laura and Damon arrived at the frat house, they were greeted by a college student with a large drink in his hand, who Laura recognized, but had no idea what he was called. Fortunately, he immediately introduced himself.

"Hey. I'm Frankie, unassuming serial killer." Frankie introduced himself.

"I'm Jack." Damon introduced himself as he and Laura took a drink. "And this is the lovely lady who I just...Rippered." he frowned.

"Welcome to the Murder House, Bloody Mary's are free until midnight. Enjoy yourselves." Frankie told them as he walked away, leaving Damon and Laura looking around alone.

"Well hats off to these idiots." Damon said, symbolically taking his hat off and puts it back on. Suddenly Damon pointed to the top of the stairs, where Laura saw Professor Shane. "Oh look, Professor Creepy." He frowned.

"I thought he was in his office." Laura narrowed her eyes.

"Maybe he was looking for his stash." Damon shrugged. "He'd have gotten here before us because we went back to the car." He said as Laura nodded thoughtfully, hoping Damon was right.

"So, you ready to feed?" Damon asked.

"Lead the way." Laura smiled as Damon wandered into the main room which was full.

Damon turned to Laura. "Inebriated sleezeballs all covered in blood. Come on. Pick one." He said as Laura looked around the room for the roofie guy she remembered from the show. She spotted him slipping something in the drink that belonged to the girl he was talking to.

"I think I found one." Laura told Damon, looking in the direction of her chosen victim.

"Roofie guy?" Damon asked.

"Mhm." Laura replied.

"Nice choice. Go get him." Damon told her, as Laura walked over to the roofie guy and bumped into him.

"Oh.. I'm sorry...Drink?" Laura asked, handing him a drink.

"Sure." The guy said as Laura smiled at him flirtatiously, walking away, gesturing for him to follow her.

"I'll be right back." The guy said to the girl he roofied, before following Laura into a small side room, where Laura put her drink down.

"Great party, right?" the roofie guy asked.

"Yeah." Laura nodded before throwing him against a wall and stared into his eyes. "You're not gonna make a sound." She told him as she clutched his head, bit down into his neck and allowed the warm fresh blood to fill her mouth.

Laura had never known such an amazing feeling. Bloodbags were okay, the filled her and made her strong, but straight from the vein was a whole other level. This made her feel not only strong and powerful, but she was getting a buzz from it. Her whole body felt more alive than ever before. Every fiber inside her was singing and dancing, her senses were becoming stronger, which is how she heard footsteps behind her.

"Now remember the idea is not to kill him." Damon warned her, as she kept drinking, wanting to ignore him. "Laura." His voice became a little sterner, although she ignored him and still continued to drink. "Step away from the ledge." He insisted. "Laura!" he whispered loudly as Laura finally stopped and pulled away, her mouth dripping with blood, but she didn't care.

"Leave and forget about this." Laura compelled him. "You will never want to have sex again." She warned him as he scuttled out of the room. Laura turned to Damon and smiled triumphantly.

"Nice touch. A little harsh though." Damon laughed.

Laura wiped her mouth. "Elena didn't compel him to never want to have sex again though. But he deserved it, and it has hopefully saved a few women from being raped." She said smugly.

"You could have compelled him to never do it again." Damon offered.

"Now where's the fun in that?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

Damon laughed. "How do you feel?" he asked.

"I feel good." She laughed as she walked over to Damon and wrapped her arms around him. "I want more." She whispered into his ear. "Lot's more."

They made their way back onto the dancefloor and began to dance with single people. Every time, Laura would compel someone not to scream or be scared, before biting into their neck and taking just enough blood to make her feel better and better after every drink, never taking more than a pint from anyone, to make sure they were fine after wards.

After she'd drank from the third person, she looked around for Damon, who was with a girl, clearly feeding, although it looked far more intimate than that. The sight of them together seemed to stir up a blaze of emotions.

First of all, Laura immediately felt turned on, she wanted to join in with the feeding frenzy, and then have Damon all to herself so they could fuck. This wasn't about romantic love making, this was a deep carnal desire which only Damon could satisfy. The next emotion to hit her was hate. Hatred for the girl he was feeding from. Laura had never felt the need to literally rip someone's head off before, but at that moment, all of her emotions seem to direct themselves in that area. Laura knew he was only feeding, but she didn't like the intimate nature of it, she wanted Damon all to herself.

Laura shook her head, trying to pull herself out of whatever emotional state she was in, probably induced by the drugs in the blood of the students. However, the moment Damon turned around, all hate and jealousy was forgotten. Blood ran down the side of his mouth from where he'd been feeding, which seemed to hit Laura straight to the core. More importantly, his eyes, which were wild from the blood lust, were trained on her as he moved sensually across the dancefloor in her direction.

As the notes from Calvin Harris's _Close to You_ filled the room, Laura remembered the scene where Damon and Elena danced. The only difference was this time, there was no Bonnie to interrupt them. Instead, they could do what they like, how they liked and with who they liked, without the fear of being judged.

Once they met, they began to dance together in the most intimate way Laura knew. Like from the move _Dirty Dancing_, Laura straddled Damon's thigh and wrapped her arms around his neck as they moved together in unison with the music. Laura's hands roamed down Damon's chest, while he stroked her hair.

The blood running down the Damon's mouth caught her eye. Instead of wiping it off like Elena did in the show, Laura opted to be a little bolder. Instead, as soon as he lifted his head slightly, Laura traced her tongue up his throat and to his chin, where she captured the excess blood in her mouth.

Damon practically froze at her actions, initially unsure of what to do, however, he soon recovered and licked the excess blood from her face. Laura noticed the veins around Damon's eyes, momentarily appear, before he quickly got them under control. That was enough to tell Laura he wanted what she wanted, and she wasn't willing to wait.

"I want you." Laura whispered into Damon's ear.

"Are you sure it's not the blood?" Damon asked.

"No." Laura shook her head. "Why?" she frowned.

"I just want it to be real." Damon told her.

"It is real Damon." Laura insisted. "I didn't want you to stop kissing me earlier, before the blood." She admitted.

"And you're sure you won't regret it?" Damon asked. "You hated me forty-eight hours ago."

"Hate?" Laura said, remembering Katherine's words. "Now that sounds like the beginning of a love story, not the end of one." She smirked as she took his hand. "Let's find somewhere a little quieter." She said as they left the dancefloor together.


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Just as Damon was about to lead Laura out of the room, from the corner of her eye, she spotted the familiar figure of Connor Jordan. Laura quickly pulled Damon into the room where she'd not so long ago, fed from the roofie guy. Damon looked around the room, completely confused as Laura peaked out and saw him meeting up with Professor Shane.

"I didn't know you were into kinky public sex." Damon raised an eyebrow.

Laura rolled her eyes "I thought Elijah told you Connor Jordan was on a flight from Seattle." She whispered.

Damon got out his phone and showed her the text, confirming Damon's story. "What's going on?" he asked.

"See that guy talking to Professor Shane?" Laura asked as Damon looked up the stairs and nodded. "That's Connor Jordan." She told him. "Whoever Elijah is tracking, is someone completely different." She said in a hushed voice. "We've got to get out of here. He'll know there's vampires around, he's supernaturally programmed to kill them.

"Elijah's witch must be on the blink." Damon said, looking confused.

Just then Professor Shane and Connor made their way downstairs. Damon pushed Laura up against the wall and began to kiss her. However, they were both preoccupied with Connor, therefore, although the kiss was still amazing, they were both more interested in Connor than the kiss. As soon as Professor Shane and Connor left the building, they stopped kissing.

"Who the hell was he talking to on the phone?" Damon frowned. "It clearly wasn't Connor."

"I wonder if it was Hayley." Laura suggested.

"Who the hell is Hayley?" Damon asked.

"She's the one who gets rid of Klaus?" Laura told him.

"She kills him?" Damon looked concerned as Laura shook her head.

"Klaus leaves and moves to New Orleans." Laura explained. "Because of Hayley."

"She hot?" Damon raised an eyebrow as Laura rolled her eyes.

"Klaus gets her pregnant." Laura told him as Damon looked at her in complete shock.

"How?" Damon asked.

"Because he's a werewolf." Laura explained. "Look, don't you think we should follow them or something?"

Damon nodded as they followed them all the way to Professor Shane's office. The door was slightly ajar, which meant Damon and Laura could stand a fair distance away and still hear what they were saying.

"I need you to go to Mystic Falls under the guise of looking into the explosion at the Young farm." Professor Shane told him.

"Are there plenty of vampires for me to kill?" Connor asked.

"They've left town." Professor Shane told him. "But don't worry, they'll be back soon." He told him. "I have a plan to lure them back." He said.

"How?" Connor asked.

"You don't need to know the details. Just go there. You might need to wait a couple of days for them to arrive, but trust me, they will." Professor Shane told him. There was silence for a minute before Professor Shane spoke once more. "Are you going to just stand there or are you going to find somewhere to stay in Mystic Falls?" he asked.

Damon and Laura looked around and they both spotted a door. They rushed over and opened it, finding it was a janitors closet. Luckily, there was plenty of room inside, so they hid inside until Connor walked past, followed by Professor Shane a few minutes later.

"Who is this guy? GI Joe?" Damon asked. "I don't get why you're so scared, he's human."

"He has supernatural strength." Laura explained. "He's not just a normal hunter. He can take you on. He was in the military and is an expert on weapons. He makes Ric look like a novice."

"Ric was a novice." Damon frowned.

"This guy is intense. He will not stop. He uses werewolf toxin in nail bombs." She told him as Damon widened his eyes in shock.

"Impressive. If we get Ric back, I'll suggest that to him." Damon said absentmindedly, as he suddenly surveyed their surroundings. "You know, if we weren't on the trail of a vampire hunter, this would be an excellent place to make out." He smirked.

"Do you have a one-track mind?" Laura asked.

"You did earlier." Damon reminded her.

"That was before Connor Jordan showed up." Laura shook her head.

"I'm multi-tasking." Damon grinned.

"Let's get out of here." Laura sighed as Damon pouted. "We need to warn everyone that Connor is on his way to Mystic Falls and has the addresses of the lake houses."

"We should get our loved ones out of town." Damon told her.

"And go where?" Laura asked.

"Let's get back to the car and have a look at the list you took pictures of." Damon said. "That way, we know who we need to tell to leave." He said to which Laura nodded, before sneaking out of the closet and hurrying back to the car.

Once inside Damon frowned. Laura knew he was going to say something, but she had no idea what was going through his head. He looked concerned as he began to send multiple texts.

"Who are you texting?" Laura asked.

"My brother, Blondie, Sabrina, the Sheriff and the Mayor." Damon told her as Laura began to search the list of names and addresses of Professor Shane's list. "Is there anyone else on there you want to save?" he asked.

"I guess Elena would want me to save Matt." Laura shrugged, although she had to admit, she was softening towards him.

"You sure?" Damon raised an eyebrow.

"I'll text him." Laura sighed as she continued to look through the list. Fortunately, there was no mention of New Orleans, however, there was one person on the list who stood out. "Jeremy." Laura whispered. "He's on this list with a Denver address."

"He's under the protection of Kol." Damon told her. "We'll get them out." He said.

"To go where?" Laura asked. "We can't just ask these people to leave Mystic Falls and go nowhere." She said. "We can't all meet up at the same and place. This list suggests he has someone helping him, maybe a witch doing a locator spell." She said.

"The priority now, is to get people out of Mystic Falls." Damon told her. "We'll work out the details later." He said.

They eventually reached the lake house, where Caroline and Stefan were waiting for them, already packed and ready to go. Laura had sent the pictures of the list to Caroline, as she would know where everyone lived and if there were relatives not on the list where people could go.

"Where are we going?" Caroline asked as they got out of the car.

"We need to find a motel." Damon said. "Have you managed to get people out of Mystic Falls?" he asked.

"My mom is staying with one of my aunts in Richmond." Caroline told the.. "Mrs. Lockwood is staying with her brother. Their names weren't on the list. Matt, Bonnie, Abby and Jamie are all meeting up with us as soon as we decide where we're going." She said.

"That just leaves Jeremy." Laura sighed.

"Kol can take him to New Orleans." Damon told her. "Which is where we're heading."

"I thought you said to split up." Laura frowned.

"Keeping Liz and Carol separate, plus Busboy." Damon agreed. "But we need to stick together." He said. "Kol can take Jeremy to New Orleans." He said.

"But vampires can't kill Connor, and if Connor dies, he'll be replaced by Jeremy." Laura told them. "Klaus is going to want the cure. He knows who The Five are and what they lead to. With Connor he can get that. He'll want to make me human again." She said sadly.

"You still want to stay a vampire? Even after learning how to fee?" Stefan looked at Laura in disgust.

"Yeah." Laura looked at Stefan in surprise. "It's not so bad. I just give them something back. A purpose, you could say." She smiled.

Stefan rolled his eyes. "Where are we going?" he asked.

"We head to New Orleans." Damon told them. "There's a motel about forty miles from here. Laura and I need to stop to do the spell Bonnie gave us to keep Laura's memories, so we'll stay there. We might need them to help us with this Connor guy." He said.

"How do you do the spell?" Caroline asked.

"Laura takes the herbs, has a relaxing bath. They will send her to sleep. I can then extract them from her mind and memorize them." Damon explained. "If she needs or wants them back, I can put them back. But this will help with the ones she's already forgot."

"Is it urgent?" Stefan frowned.

"Bonnie text me to tell me it had to be done by tomorrow, so yes. Otherwise we have to wait another month and the spell will be harder as Damon will have to go deeper into my subconscious." Laura told them.

"Well I'm not leaving you alone with Damon!" Caroline folded her arms.

"I'm old enough to make my own decision." Laura raised an eyebrow. "I have a lot more life experience than you do."

"He just wants to get you into bed." Caroline shook her head. "He'll toss you aside when he's done." She warned.

"Funny, cus that's not how it went down in the show." Laura folded her arms.

"And how exactly did it go down?" Caroline asked. "Let me guess, a lot of sex was involved."

Laura thought for a minute before nodding. "Yep, a lot of sex. But it was more than that, they got married and lived happily ever after." She said.

"And you want to go down the same path?" Caroline raised an eyebrow.

"Elena can't survive without Damon." Laura tried to explain. "And I'm becoming that person. As much as I try to stop it, it's going to happen. At some point, I probably won't be able to survive without him. And I don't mean physically. It's about emotional survival. Without Damon, Elena could easily go off the rails and be as deadly as he is." She told her. "I've just got to come to terms with our future."

"You can still change that." Caroline insisted.

"Can I?" Laura frowned. "This is my second attempt of trying to avoid having feelings and desires for Damon, and both times it appears I can't resist him. I wanted Stefan and Elena to be together when I watched the show. I even had the hots for Stefan. But since I came into this world, I haven't had that desire for Stefan. He doesn't affect me in the same way Damon does. I can tell Elena loves Stefan, but she's not in love with Stefan."

"How do you know?" Caroline asked.

"I can feel her residual emotions." Laura explained. "Look Caroline, I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself when it comes to Damon. He needs me and I need him."

"But Stefan is your soulmate." Caroline insisted.

Laura shook her head. "No, he's not." She said. "Stefan wanted a human Katherine. When Elena becomes a vampire; he wants her to be human again. He couldn't accept her as a vampire. If Stefan and Elena were soulmates, he'd accept her both ways." Laura turned to Damon, let's find somewhere with a bathtub." She said as she and Damon loaded their car with their things while Caroline looked on, clearly unhappy with the outcome of their conversation.

It didn't take long to find the motel they were looking for. Damon had purposely suggested one that was decent and had a bathtub. It also had a bar and there was a hospital nearby so they could grab some blood bags. Stefan and Caroline had reluctantly agreed to stay at the same motel for the night. They'd even booked into the same room as each other, next to Damon and Laura's room. Once they'd unpacked for the night, they agreed to meet Stefan and Caroline in the bar to discuss what they were going to do next.

Laura, Caroline and Stefan found a booth while Damon went to the bar to get some drinks. A few minutes later he joined them with a bottle of tequila and a bottle of bourbon, ensuring they had plenty to keep them going for a couple of hours.

"What's the plan Damon?" Stefan started. "Shouldn't we be working out ways to get rid of this Connor guy?" he asked.

"We can't." Laura told them. "If a vampire kills him, then they will want to kill themselves. And a human can't take him down." She said.

"What about Bonnie?" Caroline asked, trying to hide the frostiness in her voice from their earlier argument.

"If we kill Connor, then Jeremy will become a hunter, and we are not killing him. Killing Connor is not an option." Laura said determinedly.

"We could hold him prisoner." Stefan suggested, however, Laura shook her head.

"He's too good. He'll escape. Klaus couldn't hold him. He's ex-military, an ace with booby traps. Seems to know how to extract werewolf venom and turn it into a toxin. We need another plan." Laura sighed. "I think we should let him do his job."

"And what's that?" Caroline asked.

"To kill Silas." Laura explained. "We'll take Ric with us, feed him the cure, let Silas drink from Ric and then Connor can kill Silas." she suggested.

"That's your grand plan?" Damon frowned. "I can see a lot of issues with this. Like Connor tries to kill us before we even explain it to him." He frowned. "Can't we kill Connor and let little Gilbert do the honors?" he asked.

Laura shook her head. "I don't want to risk Jeremy's life. Silas is too dangerous, and Connor stands a better chance against him than Jeremy does." She said. "Plus, I think Katherine is onto us, she's got a hunter helping her." Laura frowned as she suddenly realized what had happened. "It's Katherine." She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"What's Katherine?" Damon asked.

"Elijah and Katherine are having an affair." Laura explained, rendering then speechless, except Damon who began to make gagging noises, to which Laura slapped him on the arm. "I'm beginning to wonder of the witch Elijah used might have been one of hers, meaning he was giving us false information, even if he didn't know it." She said.

"He trusted Katherine?" Damon laughed. "And I thought he was intelligent."

"Love is blind." Caroline raised an eyebrow. "Elena, or Laura loves you remember." she said sarcastically.

"But I'm hot." Damon smirked.

"This is not getting us anywhere." Stefan sighed.

"Thank you Stefan." Laura said gratefully. "It is possible to stop a hunter from killing. But we need to give him incentive. We need to be able to complete his Hunter's Mark. If he finds out what Professor Shane is really up to, then he'll probably kill him. But maybe we can use Professor Shane instead." She smirked.

"How?" Stefan asked.

"Professor Shane knows about doppelgangers. Which means if he finds out I'm one who is in the process of merging, he'll want to keep me alive." Laura explained. "He can rewire Connor not to kill us, as long as I tell him what has to be done to raise Silas." She said. "Obviously we'll need Bonnie, but I'm not sure what we can do about the second massacre." She frowned.

"Second massacre?" Caroline asked.

"Hybrids." Laura explained. "He needs to kill twelve hybrids." She said.

"How does Jeremy complete his mark?" Stefan asked.

"He kills Kol." Laura told them. "That's our bargaining chip. We need the Originals to think Connor is going elsewhere, so they can return to Mystic Falls. Certain events have to happen, but I can't remember them all." She frowned.

"We need to do the transfer spell as quickly as possible." Damon said. "Once we've got your knowledge, then we can work out what to do. Right now, you're trying to fight this alone." He said. "We're just following what you say, but nobody knows if this is going to work. If I know what's happening, then at least I can come up with ideas."

"Can Damon show us what he finds out?" Caroline asked.

"I don't know." Laura shook her head. "The spell is specifically for me. We don't even know what Damon himself will see." She said as she looked at her phone. "We need to get this done. It's going to be daylight in a few hours."

Damon nodded. "Okay." He turned to Caroline and Stefan. "You guys need to get some rest and maybe stock up on some blood. We'll meet you here in a few hours after the transfer." He said as Laura and Damon got up to leave.

"Good luck." Caroline smiled genuinely for the first time in what seemed like a lifetime.

"Let us know when you've finished." Stefan told them.

"We'll call you as soon as we're done." Laura agreed as she and Damon left the bar and returned to their room.

Laura mixed the herbs with some water and drank the disgusting mixture straight down, while Damon ran her a bath. The tub wasn't exactly the height of luxury, but most importantly, it was clean. She stayed in it for about half an hour, when she started to become drowsy. Laura climbed out, put her pajamas on and joined Damon who was busy on his phone and drinking whiskey.

"You ready?" Damon asked as Laura climbed under the sheets, hardly able to keep her eyes open.

"As ready as I'll ever be." she yawned as Damon climbed into the bed next to her.

Damon was sat upright and rested Laura's head on his lap, and began to stroke her hair, which relaxed Laura even more. She turned her head and looked up at him, his blue eyes staring down at her, a look of love and devotion shining through.

"Kiss me." Laura whispered.

Damon leaned down and placed his lips against hers. As he did, Laura suddenly felt a warmth envelope her, before the darkness crept in, and she was finally asleep.


	33. Chapter 33

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to The Vampire Diaries, TV show or books. However, I decided to have a little play around with the characters (I would definitely like to play with Damon).**

Laura woke to the most calming and restful sensation she could remember ever experiencing. Arms were wrapped around her in such a way to make her feel warm, secure and loved. Although she had yet to open her eyes, Laura could feel her head was buried in Damon's chest. She could hear his faint heartbeat and feel the rise and fall of his chest with each breath he took. Laura took a deep breath and took in his scent. It reminded her of warm spices, with a hint of bourbon and leather. An underlying tone, which Laura didn't recognize, was one of extreme masculinity and sensuality, a scent she desperately needed to taste, as if it were the most delicious blood imaginable.

Opening her eyes, noticing it was dark outside, a neon light from the motel sign flashed outside, shining in the room. Laura looked up at Damon, who appeared to be asleep, the occasional flash of blue lighting up his face. His dark eyelashes fanned his pale skin, giving him an almost ethereal look. It was hard to believe how a man, who could look so beautiful and angelic, be a dangerous killer. Not that she cared anymore, she had the potential to be just as dangerous as he was, they were wolves in sheep's clothing.

Damon opened his eyes, looking a little sleepy, he tucked a stray hair behind Laura's ear. "You're awake." He smiled softly.

"Why is it still dark?" Laura asked.

"How did the memory download go?" Laura asked.

Damon frowned. "I understood your life." He nodded. "And I could see some of what you saw in the show. The rest was a blur."

"What did you see?" Laura asked, pushing herself up so she was face-to-face with him."

"I saw up until Stefan flipped the switch." He said. "After that, the show became blurred. It's as if the magic won't let me see my future." He suggested.

"Maybe you're not supposed to." Laura offered. "I might be the only one able to see it." She said.

"I guess that would make sense." He nodded. "But I did get to see some of your past, although it was at high speed." He said as Laura lowered her eyes and blushed.

"Even my... slightly wild college days?" she asked, closing her eyes, wishing the answer was no, but she knew the truth.

"That was the best bit." Damon laughed. "That guy you got involved with was a douchebag, but he did know some useful stuff." He smirked, as he ran his finger down Laura's cheek, which seemed to burn her, but in a good way.

"Did you understand how I felt?" Laura asked, trying to distract herself from how Damon's hands on her were beginning to send erotic currents of electricity around her body.

"No." Damon shook his head. "I never knew how you felt, I just saw what you saw. But something is different. I feel a connection to you that I didn't have before." He frowned as his fingers glided down her arms, sending shivers down her spine.

Laura knew what he meant. He'd seen her life through her eyes, he knew her parents, her friends, her dog. He was in a position to be able to choose whether he still wanted to be with her, with far more knowledge than he ever had with Elena. And from the way he was acting, she had a feeling he approved.

"And do you still think I'm Elena?" she asked.

"You didn't have a little brother and you weren't adopted." Damon said. "But I'm guessing, most of your early life was similar to Elena's. you had more freedom because your parents knew you were a doppelganger and needed life experience. So, you were a little wilder than Elena. But I like it. You still have her compassion. You'd forgive an alligator for biting your leg off." He said, causing Laura to laugh, before leaning in and gently kissing her on the lips.

The memories of how she felt after they fed last night, came flooding back. Except this time Laura wasn't high on human blood. Now she could make a rationale choice about what she wanted to do, except the taste of Damon's lips left no room for rationale thinking. No blood could ever taste as good as he did, or even make her feel like he was making her feel right now. Every nerve ending on her body was pulsating, sending messages to her brain, telling her she wanted him to be as close to her as was inhumanly possible.

With vampire speed, Laura was soon straddling Damon's hips. She grabbed his hands and pushed them up against the wooden headboard, startling Damon as she pulled away from his gentle kiss.

"You're mine." Laura growled.

"I've been yours since the moment we met." Damon said genuinely.

"Which time?" Laura smirked.

"Every one of them." Damon whispered as he tried to lift his head to reach her lips, but Laura pulled away, resulting in a pout from Damon.

"You've made love to me before." Laura explained. "I can't remember it, so I'm in charge. You know what I like, and I want it my way." She smiled.

"I didn't bring the appropriate gear." Damon said, biting his bottom lip. "I left the whips and chains at the house."

"I said making love." Laura shook her head. "You're getting ahead of yourself. We can try that out a little later." She smirked.

"You better keep that promise." Damon's eyes flashed with desire.

The look in Damon's eyes affected Laura so much, the veins around her own eyes began to tingle, as she felt her fangs descend. Heat flood to her core as the carotid artery in Damon's neck seemed to scream out to her 'bite me'. Laura bent her head down to Damon's neck and took in his intense scent, she traced her tongue up the outline of the pulsating carotid artery, earning her a small gasp from Damon's lips. Laura gently placed her lips on Damon's neck and pierced the artery with her teeth, making only tiny holes as she didn't want to take too much or make a mess.

The thought of mess went completely out of the window the moment she tasted his blood. There was a familiarity about it, which she couldn't place, however, more importantly, it was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted, because it tasted of Damon.

Laura felt a pinprick on the side of her own neck, where clearly Damon was biting down on her. What followed was an intense sensation of knowing and understanding. Two people connected in ways which were indescribable. She could see what he'd seen when he had taken onboard her memories, she could even tell how he viewed them, his emotions attached to what he saw, but most of all, she felt his love for her, which was the most powerful, beautiful and sexiest thing she'd ever experienced. It also intrigued her.

Laura pulled away from Damon, who stopped drinking from her. She looked into his eyes, trying to fathom what she had just seen. Seeing two people in love on a TV screen and experiencing that same love first-hand was completely different. Laura also realized that this was how Laura was supposed to retrieve her memories from Damon, and why Damon was the only one who she could do this with, as doing this with anyone else could have proven awkward.

"Bonnie must have a lot of faith in our future." Damon said. "You wouldn't have been able to do that with anyone else." He frowned. "I guess Stefan, but it would have cemented you're relationship with him."

"I'm guessing Bonnie saw what she saw and knew that it was pointless using anyone else." Laura whispered. "But now's not the time to talk." She whispered as she leaned into him and they began to kiss.

Damon sat up while Laura's hair curtained around them, cocooning them in their own little world of passion. Laura ripped open the dark blue shirt Damon was wearing; buttons flew everywhere, but Laura didn't care, Damon had plenty of shirts. Damon's hands roamed under Laura's pajama tank top, the sensation of his fingers against her skin seemingly setting her body on fire with desire. He pushed her top up, and with the help of Laura, over her head.

As she threw her top away, Damon captured her breast with his hands. The warmth of his wet tongue circling and sucking her nipples made her feel like a goddess being worshipped by her most devoted disciple. Laura ran her fingers through Damon's silky soft hair, taking in the texture of each individual strand, which was a new sense of touch she seemed to be discovering.

Damon lifted his eyes towards hers, pleading with her to honor her promise of making him hers. Laura pushed Damon back down onto the bed, so that she was on top of him, looking down. Damon tucked her hair behind her ears as they began to kiss once more, however this time their hands began to simultaneously began to explore each other's naked flesh. Damon's fingers brushed over her nipples, causing them to pebble once more under his touch. Laura mimicked his movements, discovering the little tufts of hair in contrast to the smoothness of his skin as she went along. Her hands made their way down to Damon's slender hips, before tracing line of dark hair of his treasure trail.

Laura scuttled down the bed and began to undo his zipper. Slowly, Laura pulled his jeans down his hips, revealing his very tented black cotton boxer briefs. Laura pulled his jeans off and threw them across the room out of the way. Meanwhile Laura hooked her fingers in the elastic waistband of Damon's boxer briefs and also pulled them down, revealing his large, erect cock.

Instinct and desire took over Laura's brain as she reached down to touch him. Noticing the pre-cum seeping through the tip, Laura gently took hold of his cock in her fingers. She looked up at him as she swirled her tongue around the swollen head, tasting him, causing Damon's eyes to roll into the back of his head and moan with pleasure, as he stroked her hair, before trying to regain his composure and return her gaze. His moans of pleasure gave Laura a small sense of satisfaction in the knowledge she could have this much power over him. Laura began to pump his cock, while he continued to harden. She could tell from the way the blood way filling up his length, he was close. Doubling down on her efforts, Laura relaxed her gag reflex, although she was sure it no longer mattered now she was a vampire; and took him as far back into her throat as possible.

"Oh fuck… Laura!" Damon cried out as he grabbed hold of the pillow under his head and squeezed, while Laura felt his cum slide down the back of her throat.

Slowly, Laura lifted her head and released his softening member form her mouth. She kissed her way up his body, until she reached his face; she smiled and kissed him on the lips.

Laura raised her head to look at him. "Like I said, you're mine." She told him.

"I'm yours, forever." Damon agreed.

"You promise?" Laura raised an eyebrow.

Damon smiled and nodded. "I promise." He agreed before kissing her once more and flipping her over, so that he was on top. "My turn." He purred. "But first, I want you to close your eyes, relax your senses. The experience will be heightened even more." He told her, as Laura did as he said.

Laura felt Damon press his chest against her as he kissed her shoulder. He gently stroked his fingers down her stomach followed by his lips and tongue, forcing Laura to relax. She began to understand what Damon had meant by asking her to close her eyes as it heightened her senses even further. Every time he touched her, her body, she was flooded with hot, spine-tingling sensations, reaching right down to her pussy.

Once he reached the bottom of her pelvis, Damon pulled off Laura's pajama pants and nudged her legs slightly apart, kissing the inside of her thigh's all the way up from her knees until he reached her pussy. He gently ran his fingers down her slit before circling her entrance with the tip of his finger. Laura thought she was going to explode at the sensation, however it turned out to just be the start. Damon stroked her folds once more before parting them with his fingers and blowing into her entrance, his tongue followed the line of her slit starting from her nub and circling it before returning to her pussy.

Laura cried out as Damon pressed his tongue inside her entrance, practically taking her breath away, while at the same time massaging her nub with his thumb. Heat began pooling in the pit of Laura's stomach as the repeated probing action of his tongue increased the throbbing in her pussy, building her up to such an exploding point, she thought she was going to come. However, Damon had other ideas and changed what he was doing. Instead he began to suck on her nub as he inserted two fingers inside her and gently began pump gently whilst his mouth paid close attention to her clit.

Laura began to moan loudly, the sensations running through her body were too much. Damon was right about closing her eyes, her focus was almost entirely on his touch, leaving her no room to think, all she knew was that she about to fall over the edge. The intense heat building up inside of her, along with her throbbing pussy signaled she was on the verge of an extremely powerful orgasm. Damon must have recognized the signs as he inserted a third finger and increased the pace. Finally, white hot spasms exploded throughout her pussy, the sensations sending Laura spiraling into an abyss of never-ending pleasure. The orgasm which was ripping through her body was unlike any other she'd experienced before. Instead of being confined to her pussy, it was wreaking havoc throughout her entire body.

"Oh fuck...Damon...Aargh!" Laura cried out as she arched her back losing the ability to think or speak along the way. Her body went rigid as wave after wave of orgasm hit her.

Damon made his way back up her body, kissing her stomach and gently catching her breasts with his teeth, until by the time he reached her face, she had managed to recover from her orgasm.

"You can open your eyes now." Damon told her as she did as she was told and stared into the icy blue depths of his beautiful eyes.

"I love you." Laura said before she could stop herself, stunned at her sudden feelings, but understanding there was a link between Elena's feelings, her current feelings and possibly how she felt before Esther took her memories away.

"I know." Damon smiled. "I felt it when we blood shared." He leaned down and kissed her. "I love you too." He smiled, kissing her again and pressing his hips up against hers, which surprising Laura as he was as hard as steel already.

Laura pulled away from the kiss and looked at him in shock. "How did you recover so quick?" she asked.

"It's one of the perks of being a vampire." Damon smirked. "Now turn around and get on your knees." He commanded. "I'd suggest you hold on tight." He warned as Laura smiled. He'd clearly pulled that piece of information from her head and made note, as doggy style was one of her favorite positions.

Laura got on her knees, leaned forward and placed her hands on the headboard so that her back was horizontal. From behind, she felt Damon run his cock up and down her slit, coating himself in her juices before gently pushing his length inside her. Holding her hips, he inserted himself a little at a time, allowing Laura to stretch and accommodate his girth, until he was fully buried inside her, uniting them as one.

"You ready?" he asked as Laura nodded breathlessly in response. "Fuck...you're tight Laura." Damon moaned as he kissed her back.

Damon set a slow pace, allowing Laura to become accustomed to him reaching parts of her body which had never been touched before. Although Laura herself had experienced this position before, it became quite clear Elena hadn't as Laura's reaction was one of surprise by how different it felt to the previous times, although it could also be put down to either vampirism or Damon's excellent bedroom skills.

However once Laura was acclimatized to the deep penetration, his tempo increased, as Laura began to move her hips in unison with his, to ensure his thrusts were pushing his cock as deep inside her as possible. Damon's tempo increased further, harder and faster than any human could muster or take. Yet, Laura was able to match it with ease, although she wasn't sure the bed was going to hold out for much longer, if the creaking was anything to go by.

Laura threw her head back as she felt Damon massage one of her breasts with one hand, gently pinching her nipple, causing it to pebble, while simultaneously circling her swollen nub with his other hand. The action of Damon's fingers, combing with the deep penetration and heightened senses caused the heat that had been gradually building up in the pit of her stomach to turn to boiling point, the throbbing between her legs was now practically numb, waiting for the inevitable.

"Come for me Laura." Damon commanded seductively, even though she'd barely recovered from her previous orgasm. However, her body responded to his velvety tones as the full force of her second orgasm hit her.

"Oh yes...oh yes...oh my god...Damon...Damon...aargh" she cried as the white-hot spasms ripped throughout her pussy once more while electric pulses rocked throughout the rest of her body. Laura arched her back, pressing her hips back towards Damon as he continued to slowly thrust in and out as her pussy began to contract around his cock. He managed to pull out to stop him from reaching his own climax as he clearly hadn't finished yet.

"Lay down on your front." Damon whispered.

Laura lay face down flat on the bed as Damon rested his weight on top of her. Her strength meant he was light as a feather, although she could simultaneously sense his weight by how much the bed dipped under them. Damon parted her legs once more, turning her head to the left and tucking her hair over her right shoulder, revealing her neck.

Damon pushed his cock inside Laura's extremely slick pussy, moving slowly as this position required. His hand slipped underneath her so that he could massage her nub at the same time. If that wasn't enough, Laura felt a sharp prick on her neck as Damon's teeth entered her carotid artery and he began to suck on her blood, taking her to dizzying new heights.

The next few moments of her life were like nothing she'd ever experienced before. This was no orgasm in the traditional sense. Her core burned and contracted like her previous two orgasms, but this was different. The delicious experience wasn't just confined to her core. Every vein, artery, nerve and even her blood felt like it was simultaneously reacting the same way. Her entire body violently convulsed with pleasure, almost throwing Damon off her, but he managed to hold on. The bed wasn't so lucky as she heard a loud crack, telling her they'd taken it to its limit, but Laura no longer cared, all she knew and wanted was pleasure, even though she'd lost the ability to moan, pant or speak.

Eventually Damon stopped biting her, and Laura's orgasm quickly faded, leaving her breathless and wanting more, although her body was almost exhausted from whatever Damon had just done to her, because Laura wasn't sure if multiple orgasm quite covered the intensity.

Damon took her weight with his arm and pulled her up to his chest where she rested her head against the crook of his neck.

"Lay down and let me do all of the work." Damon told her, to which all Laura could do was nod in response.

She still hadn't fully recovered from her previous orgasm and she wasn't sure she was capable of a vocal response. As Damon helped her lay down on the her back. The first sight to welcome her was Damon's beautiful blue eyes, looking down on her as if she were the most precious jewel in the world. He rested his arms either side of her head; his cock lined up at her entrance before she felt the wonderful sensation of him filling her once more. Laura wrapped one arm around Damon's neck and pulled him towards her, their lips meeting once more.

This time, Damon began to thrust gently once more as they kissed hungrily. Their mouths and tongues seemingly unhappy about the lengthy separation. Laura wrapped her legs around Damon's waist, as new a found energy allowed her to match his thrusts with her hips as they both upped the tempo once more to vampire speed, to which the bed creaked even louder at its disapproval. Damon stroked one hand down Laura's body and cupped her behind, giving her additional support, while Laura ran her fingernails down Damon's back, urging him on.

The only sound to be heard in the room was of their panting and moans of pleasure. The smell of sex circulated the room, mixed with Damon's intoxicating scent simply turned Laura on more than she thought possible. Laura wanted the moment to last forever, however she knew it was not to be, because, despite being a vampire, she wasn't sure how much more stamina she had left. She could feel the buildup of a fourth orgasm inside her, but she wanted Damon to come with her.

"I'm not going to last much longer." Damon moaned.

"Then let go." she panted as Damon moved the hand which was cupping her behind and began to massage her nub.

"I will if you will." he grinned, applying a little more pressure to her swollen nub. "Come for me Laura." he asked for one last time as her body complied.

"Yes...yes...yes...fuck, Damon…" she screamed, as the white-hot spasms of her orgasm caused her throbbing pussy to pulsate around Damon's cock. She arched her back, pressing her breasts into Damon's chest before her body went rigid as wave upon wave of her orgasm rocked throughout her body, her mouth forming a silent 'O' as once again she lost the ability to speak, her fingernails ripped down the back of Damon's shoulders and the smell of his blood filled the air. Laura looked up at Damon as she wanted to see him brought to his knees with pleasure. She didn't have to wait long as her own climax triggered his.

"Fuck...Laura...aargh." Damon cried out as he scrunched his face up while he pressed his hips tightly into her. Laura felt his warm seed spill inside her, providing her what felt like the most satisfying moment of her life. Right at that moment, Damon looked even more stunning than usual, his expression a mixture of pleasure, agony and a vulnerability she suspected only she would ever get to see. At this point in time she was his, while he was completely hers as their bodies continued to be merged together, clinging to one another for dear life.

As their panting subsided, Damon pulled out of her and rolled onto his back. Wordlessly Laura curled up into him and rested her head on his chest, to listen to his faint vampire heartbeat and stare at the blinking blue neon light outside while they both recovered. Damon pulled Laura in close and sighed, suggesting he was thinking about something.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked, lifting her head to look at him.

"You know how our story ends, right?" Damon asked as Laura nodded. "Do you want the same thing?"

"You mean do I want marriage and kids?" Laura frowned as Damon nodded. "I've resigned myself to a life without children, and I'm okay with it." She smiled. "Why?" she narrowed her eyes.

"We have the opportunity to have a real life." Damon told her. "I'm happy for us to be eternal vampires. I just don't want you to regret choosing me over a normal life." He admitted.

"I won't." Laura grinned. "This life is already an improvement." She said before frowning. "You know, I can't remember what my old job was." She said, suddenly scared. "Why, I thought we did the transfer. Does that mean you took my memories?" she asked.

Damon smiled and placed his hands on her head. Suddenly Laura was in a classroom, stood in front of the pupils, discussing the Civil Was. Damon removed his hands from her head and the vision disappeared, however, Laura could still remember it.

"Did we need to do the blood share?" Laura frowned.

"I tried to send you a vision before when we kissed. Did you see anything?" he asked as Laura shook her head. "Then yes, we needed to blood share to complete the spell." He smiled as there was a knock at the door.

"When you two have quite finished destroying that bed, we need to go." Came Caroline's voice from the other side of the door. "Bonnie called and apparently Professor Shane wants to make a deal." She told them, a sense of panic in her voice.

"What kind of deal?" Laura called out.

"Help him or Tyler dies." Caroline cried. "Apparently some werewolf is watching over him, and Professor Shane is threatening to tell the hunter where he is." She said tearfully.

Laura looked at Damon who rolled his eyes. "We'll be ready in a minute." She called out to Caroline, before turning to Damon. "We've got to help him." She said vehemently.

"Okay." Damon nodded. "Let's go." He reluctantly agreed.


End file.
